- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
Tabqa Victory Consolidates ISIS Control Around Raqqa – But Urban Showdown Still to Come
The militant group has pushed Assad’s army out of its last military stronghold in the province. How much did it gain?
In-depth
United States
- Diplomacy & Foreign Affairs
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Articles
- Forum
Obama’s Delicate Balance: Taking on ISIS While Keeping Assad at Bay
Analysts say that Aleppo would be the most effective place for the U.S. to strike ISIS. But it could prove politically impossible.
- Human Rights
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
The Christian Science Monitor: After Foley Murder, More Jihadi Threats to Murder Hostages
Lebanese hostages held by Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria and the so-called Islamic State were threatened with death in a video yesterday unless Lebanon’s Hezbollah withdraws its support for Bashar al-Assad.
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
ISIS Fights for Control of Regime’s Last Stronghold in Raqqa
Taqba Air Base is a strategic point for both sides. How long can Assad forces hold it?
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Articles
- Forum
One Year After Ghouta, Could ISIS Emerge as a New Chemical Threat?
The Sunni militant group has taken radioactive isotopes from Mosul University, and controls a small amount of Saddam Hussein’s leftover chemical material in al-Muthanna.
- Civil Society
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
Fighting the Spillover of Syria’s War, Lebanon’s Army Asks for Aid Against ISIS
As the Syrian conflict spills over the Lebanese border, the LAF is maintaining a defensive strategy, leaving the aggressive pursuit of ISIS and various rebel groups to Hezbollah.
- Diplomacy & Foreign Affairs
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
Who Has the Advantage as Assad Moves to Take on ISIS?
As a battle for supremacy looms, ISIS has the momentum, but analysts say that if forced to choose, Western and Arab leaders will back Assad.
- Displacement
- Articles
- Forum
The Christian Science Monitor: As Ethnic Refugees Flood Iraqi Kurdistan, A Strain on Hospitality
Members of Iraq’s Yazidi minority and other groups have flooded into Iraqi Kurdistan for safety. But their needs are vast, and the region is coming under strain.
- Displacement
- Op-Eds
The Zeitouna Diaries, Part 3: Orientation
Lina Sergie Attar
Lina Sergie Attar
At a camp for Syrian children, the Syrian-American author finds resilience – and home.
- Diplomacy & Foreign Affairs
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
U.S. Strikes on Iraq Could Galvanize ISIS in Syria, Analysts Say
As the U.S. targets strategic ISIS points in Kurdistan, the Sunni militant group could be taking advantage of the situation to plan an expansion in Syria’s eastern provinces – and to move its larger weapons to the safety of Raqqa.
- Opposition Groups & Rebel Forces
- Religious & Ethnic Groups
- Articles
- Forum
The Christian Science Monitor: Australians Aghast at Boy’s Grisly Photo from Syria. Are Jihadis Coming Home?
The photograph shows a young boy holding a decapitated head and was published by Australian media. The incident has drawn attention to the ranks of Westerners joining jihadist groups in Syria and Iraq.
- Human Rights
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
In Deir Ezzor, ISIS Divides and Conquers Rebel Groups
Armed with weapons from Iraq, the militant group has played into discord among jihadist groups on the ground in eastern Syria, making rapid gains.
- Diplomacy & Foreign Affairs
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
Foreign Policy: The Islamic State Is the Newest Petrostate
The Islamic State, the world’s richest terror group, is reaping millions of dollars a day from selling stolen oil to shady businessmen across the Middle East.
- ISIS
- Religious & Ethnic Groups
- Articles
- Forum
As ISIS Advances, Assessing the State of the Syrian Army
We look at how the Syrian Army can respond to the challenge from ISIS.
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Religious & Ethnic Groups
- Articles
- Forum
The Christian Science Monitor: IS Tightens its Sectarian Rule as Iraq Taps New President
Fouad Massoum was elected as Iraq’s president while the jihadi group the Islamic State destroyed Christian shrines and imposed Islamic dress on women in the country’s north.
- Displacement
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Human Rights
- Articles
- Forum
How Israel’s Ground Invasion of Gaza Could Impact Assad
As the global spotlight shifts to the ground offensive in Palestine, reverberations are being felt in Syria, with which Israel shares a border – and a contentious history.
- Arts & Culture
- War Economy
- Articles
- Forum
Conversations: An Aleppo Auto King, Now Selling Street Food
In Aleppo, Sako, 60, owned an auto-repair business that employed 15 workers. Now the Syrian-Armenian, one of 11,000 to settle in Yerevan since the conflict began, rents and operates a small falafel and shwarma stand in the center of town.
- Health
- Human Rights
- Articles
- Forum
The Christian Science Monitor: How Webcams in Syria’s Bombarded Hospitals Offer a Lifeline for War Victims
Syrian regime forces have allegedly targeted hospitals as a weapon of war, and doctors and nurses have fled the fighting. Telemedicine offers a way to guide treatment of patients in intensive care.
- Human Rights
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
As Various Actors Circle Iraq, ISIS Faces Foreign Foes
We look at the prospects of foreign intervention to check ISIS, particularly the chances that the U.S. will get further involved.
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
As ISIS Looks Deeper into Deir Ezzor, Nusra Remains Formidable Opponent
We examine the potential for further collaboration between the two, their strengths and whether ISIS will be able to bring Jabhat al-Nusra and other factions under its umbrella – creating one cohesive unit.
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Articles
- Forum
As Syrian Regime Strikes ISIS, Analysts Debate What Comes Next
As reports emerged that ISIS has been gaining recruits from Jabhat al-Nusra and other extremist groups, concern spread in Damascus that its power could grow faster than expected – possibly requiring intervention.
- Civil Society
- Op-Eds
Syria: Farmers, Teachers, Pharmacists, and Dentists
Frederic C. Hof / Atlantic Council
Frederic C. Hof / Atlantic Council
“This is the second time the president has blamed nationalist opponents to the Assad regime for being unready to take advantage of aid,” writes Fred Hof.
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
Syria’s Chemical Weapons: What Happens Next?
As the OPCW declares that Assad’s chemicals have been removed and the U.S. claims a policy victory, experts caution that Syria’s government could be retaining parts of its cache – not to mention chlorine.
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
ISIS, Extremists And Syria’s Internally Displaced
At War on the Rocks, Karen Leigh and Nathaniel Rosenblatt look at how Syria’s growing IDP crisis could lead to a proliferation of extremism.
- Human Rights
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
Week in Review: In the Wake of ISIS, Everything in Syria Stands to Get Worse
To give you an overview of the latest news this week, we’ve organized the latest Syrian developments in a curated summary.
- Human Rights
- Articles
- Forum
HRW Reports Abuses in Syria’s Kurdish Northeast
The group says the PYD, which operates autonomously in three cantons, has been recruiting child soldiers and detaining those who oppose its authority.
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
Iraq, Syria, and ISIS: Analysts Weigh in on What It All Means
Experts from CSIS, the Brookings Institute, Inegma and Uticensis Risk on how the group’s Iraq offensive – and any Iranian involvement – will impact Syria’s war.
- Opposition Groups & Rebel Forces
- Articles
- Forum
The Christian Science Monitor: New Jihadi Recruitment Tool: Militants’ Instagram Accounts
By chronicling their time in Syria on Twitter, Instagram, and other websites, extremists are able to indoctrinate young Western Muslims to their cause in a new way.
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Articles
- Forum
Week in Review: Top Takeaways from a Week of Turmoil
To give you an overview of the latest news this week, we’ve organized the latest Syrian developments in a curated summary.
- ISIS
- Articles
- Forum
Syrian Rebels Unite to Fight Off an ISIS Eastward Push
Analysts say Kurds, the Islamic Front and Jabhat al-Nusra are forming a coalition. Will the spoils of its Iraq offensive give ISIS the necessary momentum in Deir Ezzor?
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Articles
- Forum
The Biggest Losers
Meet the two (other) candidates running in the presidential election set to keep Bashar al-Assad in power.
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Articles
- Forum
Election Shows Off Assad’s Confidence, Cements His Position in Power
Experts say the vote will affect not only the Syrian president but his allies, the opposition and the regime’s standing among global powers.
- Civil Society
- Articles
- Forum
Voices: Who I’m Voting for Tomorrow
This week’s presidential elections are the first national vote held in decades. We talk to pro-government and pro-rebel Syrians from across the country, asking who they’re voting for and why.
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Opposition Groups & Rebel Forces
- Op-Eds
The National: Syria’s Fragmenting Southern Front
Phil Sands / The National
Phil Sands / The National
The National’s Syria correspondent on deteriorating rebel ties on the southern front.
- Government & Pro-Government Forces
- Opposition Groups & Rebel Forces
- Op-Eds
Reading Between the Lines: Syria’s Shifting Dynamics or More of the Same?
Charles Lister
Senior Fellow, Middle East Institute
Charles Lister Senior Fellow, Middle East Institute
Brookings Doha’s Charles Lister examines Syria’s changing battle lines — and momentum.
- Human Rights
- Op-Eds
Syria: The Moral Imperative
News Deeply Contributor
News Deeply Contributor
The Atlantic Council’s Frederic C. Hof on whether the U.S. has a moral imperative to intervene in Syria.
- Displacement
- Education
- Op-Eds
“Education is the most powerful weapon:” My Journey to Illinois Institute of Technology
Nour Daoud
Nour Daoud
A week ago, four undergraduate students from Syria graduated from Illinios Tech as part of the Syrian student initiative launched with Jusoor and IIE in July 2012.
- Opposition Groups & Rebel Forces
- Articles
- Forum
How Saudi Aid Made a Construction Worker a Top Syrian Rebel Commander
The Saudis appear to have chosen Jamal Maarouf as leader of the Syrian Revolutionaries’ Front by ensuring he remains flush with cash. But money can’t command loyalty forever.
- Human Rights
- Articles
- Forum
Week in Review: Pitching Justice in the Midst of War
To give you an overview of the latest news this week, we’ve organized the latest Syrian developments in a curated summary.
- Human Rights
- Articles
- Forum
The Case for Referring Syria to the ICC
We look at what it will take to refer Assad’s government to the Hague, and the case being built around it at the U.N. Security Council.