SyriaSource

SyriaSource followed the dynamics in Syria through in-depth analysis of the impact of the conflict on Syria, its neighbors and the international community. Amplifying a diverse range of Syrian and regional voices—to reach both English—and Arabic-speaking audiences, SyriaSource transforms their words from strong but distant ideas to resounding perspectives not often heard among Washington and international policymakers. For the latest work on Syria, please visit MENASource.

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The latest on Syria


New Atlanticist

May 13, 2025

Experts react: Trump just announced the removal of all US sanctions on Syria. What’s next? 

By
Atlantic Council experts

Our experts provide their insights on how the removal of US sanctions on Syria would affect the country and the wider region.

Civil Society
Economic Sanctions


MENASource

May 8, 2025

From rubble to rebirth: A model for Syria’s reconstruction

By
Mahmood Alhosain

Almost six months since Assad regime collapse, four key pillars will determine whether this new Damascus can seize the opportunity.

Civil Society
Democratic Transitions


MENASource

Apr 29, 2025

Why the US must not let Syria slip away

By
Luke Wagner

Reconsidering the uneasy US-Syria relationship amid reports that Trump and al-Sharaa will meet during the US president’s Saudi Arabia visit.

Economic Sanctions
Middle East


MENASource

Apr 1, 2025

Israel is making a miscalculation in southern Syria. Here is why.

By
Ömer Özkizilcik

Israel’s approach in southern Syria risks deepening sectarian divisions, eroding the Druze community’s standin, and fueling broader instability.

Conflict
Defense Policy


MENASource

Mar 31, 2025

Western sanctions against Damascus must evolve—Just as Syria has

By
Sinan Hatahet

The US can play a pivotal role in shaping the next chapter of Syria’s recovery by shifting its approach from maximum pressure to calibrated influence.

Middle East
Politics & Diplomacy


MENASource

Mar 25, 2025

Dispatch from Bekaa: Inside the sectarian skirmishes on the Syria-Lebanon border

By
Nicholas Blanford

Local Shia tribesmen have battled an assortment of Sunni jihadist militias and the new Syrian security forces dominated by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).

English
Lebanon


MENASource

Mar 19, 2025

Inside Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s diplomatic offensive with Syria’s Christians and Ismailis

By
Gregory Waters

HTS’s diplomatic offensive demonstrates the leadership’s political approach, which evolved over years of engaging with the Christian and Druze communities in Idlib.

Democratic Transitions
Freedom and Prosperity


MENASource

Mar 19, 2025

Why the United States must bridge the Iraq-Syria divide

By
Sarkawt Shamsulddin

With leverage over both capitals, the United States emerges as the linchpin in delicate diplomatic moment between Baghdad and Damascus.

English
Iraq


MENASource

Mar 18, 2025

Landmark SDF-Damascus deal presents opportunity, and uncertainty, for Turkey

By
Ömer Özkizilcik

Despite positive signals, critical ambiguities remain in agreement between Syrian President Ahmed Shara and SDF commander Mazloum Abdi.

English
Middle East


MENASource

Mar 10, 2025

Syria’s women face a new chapter. Here’s how to amplify their voices.

By
Diana Rayes , Hind Kabawat

It is critical for women to be involved in transitional justice and constitutional reform processes in Syria.

Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding
Syria

Content

SyriaSource

Nov 1, 2016

Nusra’s “Mobilize” Campaign to Recruit Children

By Sarah Sheikh Ali

In April of last year, the Nusra Front—now called Jabhat Fateh al-Sham—launched a campaign they called, “Mobilize,” in northern Syria, intended to recruit children. The campaign was conducted by 300 recruiters from the group and adopted the slogan, “Don’t be one of the qaideen [people who do not actively fight; the opposite of mujahideen].” Although […]

Syria

SyriaSource

Nov 1, 2016

Military Operations in Western Aleppo, the Role of Islamists, and Russia’s new Military Buildup

By Saleem al-Omar

Last week, Jaysh al-Fateh (JAF), the opposition Islamist coalition, launched a large-scale military operation to break the regime’s siege on Aleppo, but their advance has slowed. They launched attacks on areas that have not witnessed combat before, including the Assad Suburb (Dahiyat al-Asad) in western Aleppo. Having taken control of most of the suburb in […]

Syria

SyriaSource

Oct 28, 2016

Challenges Facing the Turkish-led Offensive on al-Bab

By Haid Haid

The Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced in a speech on October 22, 2016 that the Turkish-led Euphrates Shield operation would press on to the Islamic State (ISIS)-held town of al-Bab, the group’s last stronghold in Aleppo Governorate. Erdoğan’s instructions were implemented two days later when the Turkish-led coalition suspended its offensive on the town […]

Syria

SyriaSource

Oct 26, 2016

Lessons from Russia’s Intervention in Syria

By Faysal Itani and Hossam Abouzahr

The US presidential election fast approaches, bringing the possibility of a change in US policy in Syria, meaning a review of Russia’s goals and achievements there is due. To that end the Atlantic Council’s SyriaSource has compiled a dataset of some 400 Russian actions relating to Syria since 2011, including official statements, military action, and […]

Syria

SyriaSource

Oct 25, 2016

Putin Outmaneuvers the Europeans

By Daniel R. DePetris

Despite the occasional bear wrestling and topless horseback riding—habits that might seem odd for a president—it is unwise for US and EU policy makers to underestimate Russian President Vladimir Putin. A former KGB operative, mayor, prime minister, and now three-term president, Putin is shrewd and strategic, the exact opposite qualities than what President Obama used […]

Syria

SyriaSource

Oct 21, 2016

Why Dabiq?

By Feras Hanoush

Syrian opposition groups—speaking through the Euphrates Shield operations room and backed by Turkish tanks and warplanes—announced that they had taken control over the Syrian village of Dabiq, 10 kilometers from the Syrian-Turkish border and northeast of Aleppo. Compared to other places in the region, Dabiq has great symbolic value, both historically and religiously. It is […]

Syria

SyriaSource

Oct 20, 2016

Russia Won’t Negotiate before Aleppo Falls to the Regime

By Daniel R. DePetris

Before US Secretary of State John Kerry was scheduled to travel to Switzerland and London last weekend for discussions on the Syrian crisis, US State Department spokesman Mark Toner was crystal clear that people should not expect anything much from the meetings. In hindsight, he was right: the discussions with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov […]

Syria

SyriaSource

Oct 20, 2016

Ambassador Frederic C. Hof’s Remarks at the National Defense University

By Frederic C. Hof

I’d like to thank the US Army Special Operations Center of Excellence and Ambassador Greta Holtz for having invited me to this symposium. It’s been a quarter century since I’ve worn the green suit of an Army officer, and I know for a fact it no longer fits. But as a veteran of Vietnam and […]

Syria

SyriaSource

Oct 19, 2016

Assad Ends ‘Damascus Reconciliations’ and Makes Stopping the Bombing Conditional on the Opposition’s Departure

By Hosam al-Jablawi

A few days after the Syrian regime forcibly evicted residents of Darayya, it began bombing areas around the capital of Damascus, despite the long-term truce between regime forces and opposition factions in these towns that had been in effect since 2014. According to the truce, the regime would not target residential areas and displaced persons […]

Syria

SyriaSource

Oct 19, 2016

Assad Wants to Rule Syria, but Economics Say Otherwise

By Mona Alami

Emboldened by his troops’ advances across Syria, President Bashar al-Assad declared in July 2016 that he could retake the whole of Syria in just a “few months” if other countries withdrew their support from rebel and jihadi factions. Despite Assad’s confident appraisal, the destruction of the country’s economy will prevent him from reuniting the country […]

Syria
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