Syria

Is Flexibility on Lebanon’s Prison Crisis Looming?

Although the issue was not explicitly mentioned during the joint press conference between Syria’s new leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, and Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, the matter of Syrian detainees in Lebanese prisons – an intersection of humanitarian, judicial and political concerns – was reportedly discussed during their ...

Mikati Holds Talks With Al-Shareh in Damascus

The leader of the new Syrian administration, Ahmad al-Shareh met on Saturday with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati. Syrian refugees in Lebanon and the border control issues will be tackled during the meeting that kicked off around noon. Mikati is accompanied by caretaker Foreign Minister, Abdullah Bou Habib in addition to General Security ...

Turkey Raps France, Says US Only Counterpart in Northeast Syria

Turkey's top diplomat on Friday ruled out a role for French troops in Syria, saying it was only negotiating with the United States which has sought to head off Turkish military action against Kurdish fighters there. Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan accused Paris of turning a blind eye to Turkey's security concerns, and called on France to take back ...

On His Final Trip, Blinken And the Europeans Try to Avoid a New Syrian Turmoil

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his European counterparts insisted in Rome on Thursday on the need to stabilise Syria a month after Islamist rebels overthrew the country's leader, Bashar al-Assad, amid clashes with Turkey. Mr Blinken dined in Rome on Thursday evening with his British, French, German and Italian counterparts, on the last ...

Syria Kurds Reject Any 'Division' Threatening National Unity

US-backed Kurdish forces who control an autonomous region in northeastern Syria said Wednesday they had told the new Damascus authorities they did not want to break away from the rest of the country. "We agree that we are for the unity and integrity of Syrian territory and reject any division projects that threaten the country's ...

Israel Army Briefly Detains French Reporter in Golan Buffer Zone

A French journalist was briefly detained by Israeli troops on Wednesday in the buffer zone that separated Israeli and Syrian forces in the Golan Heights until Israel entered it last month, the army said. Spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told a press briefing that the journalist "came too close to the soldiers, was questioned and ...

The Caesar Act: A Long And Winding Road

For over thirteen years, Syria has been at the heart of one of the bloodiest civil wars of the past half-century. While the fighting has subsided with the fall of Bashar al-Assad – overthrown on December 8, 2024, by a coalition of rebels led by the group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) – the country remains mired in an unprecedented economic and ...

Syria Rulers Plan 'Expanded' Committee to Prepare National Dialogue

Syria's new authorities are to set up an inclusive committee to prepare for a "national dialogue conference" to discuss the future of the country, Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said on Tuesday. Since toppling president Bashar al-Assad nearly a month ago, Syria's Islamist-led rulers have spoken of a "national dialogue conference" to map out ...

Jordan Vows Security Cooperation During Syrian FM Visit

Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said on Tuesday that the kingdom was ready to work with the new Syrian authorities to tackle drug and weapons smuggling across their shared border. Safadi welcomed his Syrian counterpart Asaad al-Shaibani and other top officials, who are on a regional trip with stops in other Arab capitals including in Saudi ...

International Flights Resume at Damascus Airport

International flights resumed at Syria's main airport in Damascus on Tuesday for the first time since Islamist-led rebels toppled President Bashar al-Assad last month, AFP journalists said. A Syrian Airlines flight bound for Sharjah, in the United Arab Emirates, took off at around 11:45 am (0845 GMT), marking the first international commercial ...