Syria

Syria pledges to form committee to investigate clashes in Sweida

The committee would investigate reported attacks and abuses against civilians and refer anyone proven to have participated in such attacks to the judiciary.

 Members of Syrian security forces ride on a back of a truck after Syrian troops entered the predominantly Druze city of Sweida on Tuesday following two days of clashes, in Sweida, Syria July 15, 2025.
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani attends a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, July 31, 2025.

Russia's Putin meets Syrian FM in Moscow, Sharaa invited to Russia-Arab summit

Jonathan Spyer

Jonathan Spyer: A closer look at Syria's current situation

Defendants Salah Abdeslam, Osama Krayem and Mohamed Abrini are escorted by police as they arrive in court during the trial of the 2016 Brussels attacks at the Justitia building in Brussels on April 3, 2023.

Swedish man found guilty in killing of Jordanian fighter pilot in Syria


Russia aims to keep hold of key influence over Syria as top diplomats meet - analysis

Ahmed al-Sharaa's government faces many hurdles and having Russia playing a stabilizing role in Syria is important for Damascus. It is not clear how Russia-Syrian relations will develop these days.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) and Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani (L) shake hands during a press conference following their talks in Moscow, Russia, July 31, 2025.

The Russia-Iran relationship is a fragile alliance of necessity, not conviction - opinion

The Russia-Iran relationship is, at its core, a partnership of convenience, not conviction, which will affect its longevity.

RUSSIA’S FOREIGN MINISTER Sergey Lavrov and Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi meet in Moscow in April. Russia and Iran are reeling under heavy international sanctions; these pressures have driven them into tighter economic and military cooperation, says the writer.

Israeli, Syrian officials to meet in Azerbaijan to discuss situation in southern Syria - report

Israel's Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani are scheduled to attend the meeting, which will focus on the security situation in southern Syria.

Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani speaks during a press conference in Damascus, May 20, 2025; illustrative.

US repatriates minor from Syrian displaced persons camp, reunites him with family

The State Department said on Tuesday that the United States repatriated a US citizen minor from a displaced persons camp in northeast Syria.

Members of a group of Bedouin families who left Sweida, take a shelter at a school, in the village of El Sahoah in Deraa Governorate, Syria, July 28, 2025.

Israeli-Druze doctor meets long-lost Syrian relatives evacuated from Sweida

'My hope is that Israel will help me and all the Druze. What is happening in Syria has not stopped, and we don’t expect help from anyone else.' the family's mother said.

The Druze doctor at Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, treating his relative from Sweida, July 2025.

Sharaa or al-Julani? IDF still suspicious of Syrian leader after Sweida massacre - analysis

IDF sources view the two names symbolically, likening them to a "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" duality, suggesting a true internal struggle within Syria's leader and his shifting alliances.

From Islamist rebel chief to statesman, embraced by major world leaders, Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has undergone a stunning transformation in just six months since ousting longtime strongman Bashar al-Assad.

Syria seeks balance in Sweida amid Druze-Bedouin clashes, Israeli strikes - analysis

As tensions rise in southern Syria, the government seeks to balance humanitarian aid with regional stability amidst Israeli strikes.

Syrian security forces walk together along a street, after clashes between Syrian government troops and local Druze fighters resumed in the southern Druze city of Sweida early on Wednesday, in Sweida, Syria July 16, 2025.

The blind spot of the West: Failed collaboration with jihadists - opinion

Western governments pursue the integration of Syrian jihadists into the international community, even at the cost of eradicating cultural diversity in Syria.

INTERNAL SECURITY FORCES stand guard at a checkpoint as buses arrive for the Syrian Arab Red Crescent’s evacuation of civilians from Sweida last week. The Druze in Sweida and nearby villages still face an urgent threat of massacre, says the writer.

Sharaa's treatment of minorities does not bode well for Middle East stability - opinion

Protecting Syria’s minorities is not just a humanitarian duty but a strategic necessity for Israel and its allies in shaping a post-war Middle East.

People hold a Druze flag, following deadly clashes between Druze fighters, Sunni Bedouin tribes and government forces, in Syria's predominantly Druze city of Sweida, Syria July 25, 2025.

Syrian extremists executed American Druze who sought to aid his family

Saraya, a member of the Druze religious minority, was living in Oklahoma but had returned to the family home in Sweida to take care of his ill father.

Bedouin fighters stand together, following the Syrian presidency's announcement of a ceasefire after days of violence in Sweida province triggered by clashes between Bedouin fighters and Druze factions, in Sweida, Syria, July 19, 2025

'I am Hamas': Syrian national bites ear off Israeli tourist vacationing in Greece - report

The Israeli national was also arrested after the attacker claimed he made racist comments, though the Israeli national remains in hospital.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators carry a banner during a protest against the arrival of an Israeli cruise ship in the port of Piraeus near Athens, Greece, June 12, 2025.