According to sources in the city of Busra al-Sham in rural Daraa, 8th Brigade fighters have received their salaries from Russia — but at only half their usual value. The 8th Brigade is headed by Ahmed al-Awda, the former leader of opposition factions, “The 5th Corps, which belongs to the …

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Faisal al-Mekdad on Thursday received an Iranian Foreign Ministry delegation led by Assistant Foreign Minister Reza Najafi. The two sides discussed laying the foundations for cooperation in different domains, particularly fighting terrorism targeting them, with emphasis on its economic form represented by unilateral coercive …

Attacks by Iran’s militias on U.S. bases around Syria are a way for Tehran to put pressure on the U.S., as part of the Nuclear Deal negotiations, according to Baladi News. Attacks against U.S. forces, leading the international coalition against ISIS, have become more and more frequent. Most recently, a …

Remarks by Russian officials following the Astana-16 meeting revealed that Russia continues to insist that Bashar al-Assad remains in power and that political settlement should be a topic separate from the reconstruction. In fact, while the West maintains its position of refusing to finance reconstruction before a UN-sponsored political settlement, …

Joseph Daher is a researcher specializing in political economy. He wrote extensively on Syria and Lebanon, and most notably authored “Syria after the Uprisings, The Political Economy of State Resilience.” He is affiliated with the European University Institute and its Wartime and Postconflict in Syria program. The Syrian Observer: Recent …

Turkey has undertaken to protect Kabul’s airport. It is a risky job, but also one which promises some substantial strategic rewards. The Taliban do not shy away from assertive statements, nor do they hesitate to commit war crimes. So, this week’s statement by the group castigating Turkey’s offer to remain …

Prolonging the UK military presence in Afghanistan would not have helped so long as the fundamental problem of the absence of a strategy remained unaddressed. But the manner of leaving and what follows still matter a great deal to the UK. It feels a lot like 1989. Once again, the …

As NATO troops prepare to leave Afghanistan by 11 September in the face of a Taliban surge, a question remains unanswered: why did the international intervenors fail in their mission to bring stability to Afghanistan? Five reasons stand out: The West’s best wasn’t good enough. The lives of 3,500 international …

С един изпреварващ, хитър ход Слави Трифонов успя да сложи всички останали политически сили в шах, обръщайки ги в оправдателен режим. Посланието на водещия, превърнал се в най-силния политик у нас към момента, е пределно ясно – “или се съобразявате с мен, или отиваме към нови избори”. Сега бившият водещ …

Сейм Литвы принял резолюцию, в которой назвал нелегальных мигрантов “гибридными агрессорами” и инструментом для “дестабилизации ситуации” в стране. А глава Минобороны обвинил белорусские власти в “покровительстве” организаторам миграционного кризиса, обрушившегося на прибалтийскую республику. Арвидас Анушаускас заявил, что нелегальные мигранты перед пересечением границы проходят инструктаж со стороны “людей в камуфляже”. Им …