Syria

The Euphrates Dam Is at Risk in the SDF Operation to Capture It from ISIS

By Abdel Jawad Sakran

The condition of the Euphrates Dam has deteriorated throughout the Syrian conflict, putting the region at risk of environmental disaster. The greatest threats are international coalition airstrikes against Islamic State positions, and neglect for dam maintenance.

In Astana, a Deal That Leaves Assad’s Power Intact

The ceasefire agreement recently negotiated by Russia, Turkey, and Iran preserves Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s grip on power, but the deal itself is significant because for the first time the key players, with the exception of the United States, have come to the table with an understanding that a political solution to the conflict is […]

Astana Peace Talks: To the Victor Go the Spoils

By Nabeel Khoury

The Syrian peace talks in Astana, Kazakhstan, consecrate Russia’s primacy in Syria, launched with its entrance into the conflict in 2015, and extended with its ability now to convene peace talks and dictate terms. The outcome of the talks on January 23 also put on display the ascendant axis of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Lebanese […]

A Shared Shame: How Assad and His Apologists Manipulated Syria’s Struggle and Story—and Why That Matters

By Anthony Elghossain

Ever since it kicked off this macabre dance by shooting a bunch of teenagers in 2011, the Assad regime has masterfully manipulated Syria’s struggle—and story. Not only has it escalated, militarized, and radicalized the struggle, from a peaceful contest for control that it never could have survived to a war that it has survived for […]

Armed Opposition Groups in Syria Face Obstacles to Unity

By Hosam al-Jablawi

There has been renewed talk about combatant groups in the north of Syria joining together, particularly after opposition groups lost Aleppo—the largest city in northern Syria—to Assad’s regime. Opposition groups first entered the city in 2012, and its recent loss led to a decline in their popularity. Demonstrations against opposition groups demanded that they unite […]