US concedes it has double the number of troops in Syria as Biden sends officials to Damascus
The Pentagon announced the US currently has “approximately 2,000” troops in Syria, more than double the previously disclosed number of 900, a Defense Department spokesperson said at a press briefing on Thursday.
From Fighters to Policemen in a Post-Assad Damascus
As the rebels who ousted Syria’s longtime dictator, Bashar al-Assad, transition from insurgents to administrators, maintaining order in the streets of the capital has become a top priority.
Human Rights Watch8d
Syria: Mass Grave in Damascus Should be Protected, Investigated
The state of a mass grave in Damascus and statements by people living in the surrounding area suggest that the area is a mass crime scene and may have been the site of other summary executions
The road back to Damascus: Syria’s new rulers face challenges in de-weaponizing supply chains
Since 2011, the weaponization of regional and global supply chains through economic sanctions has devastated Syria’s economic and social activities.
Indiatimes2d
Syria Israel Middle East Crisis Live Updates: Turkey's foreign minister meets HTS leader in Damascus
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday: "Fidan would be going to Damascus to discuss the new structure in Syria." 17:52 (IST) Dec 22 Iran's supreme leader says Syrian youth will resist ...
Atlanta Journal-Constitution12d
Syria's new authorities say they've secured the release of an American pilgrim imprisoned by Assad
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — An American citizen who disappeared seven months ago into former Syrian President Bashar Assad's notorious prison system was suddenly discovered Thursday outside Damascus ...
NPR8d
Syrian families scour hospitals and morgues for loved ones lost under Assad's rule
Warning: This article contains descriptions of torture. DAMASCUS, Syria – Photographs of tortured and broken bodies are taped to the outside walls of Al-Mujtahid Hospital in central Damascus.
France returns flag to Damascus embassy as new Syria authorities build contacts with West
France raised its flag at its Damascus embassy on Tuesday for the first time in 12 years and European Union officials prepared to engage with the new Syrian leadership, a sign of the growing contacts after Bashar al-Assad was ousted as president.
Syrians hope for a new era of peace in first Christmas after Bashar Assad’s ouster
Christians in Syria lit up a giant Christmas tree and celebrated Mass as they spoke of their hopes for a new era after the ouster of president Bashar Assad (AP video shot by Abdulrahman Shaheen and Hussein Malla).
Morocco World News6d
International Law and Diplomacy at Their Highest Scale of Absurdity
Assad's regime was overthrown continues to astonish political analysts and strategists. Last weekend, a report that went unnoticed revealed that Abkhazia had decided to close down its embassy in Damascus.
For Syria’s Christians, Christmas is a time to grapple with hope and fear
Christians protest in Syrian capital after burning of Christmas tree
Syrian Christians attend Christmas mass for first time since fall of Assad
Syrian Christians attended Christmas Eve services on Tuesday for the first time since the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad in early December, in an early test of the new Islamist rulers' pledges to protect the rights of the country's religious minorities.
Syria’s new leaders dissolve rebel factions, merge them under Defense Ministry
The visits came a day after Sharaa — also known by his nom de guerre, Abu Mohammed al-Jolani — met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, the highest-level visit from Lebanon to Syria to date. Arab states had responded cautiously to Assad’s fall and the takeover by HTS-led Islamist rebels.