Tag: Syria

U.N. approves U.S.-backed effort to lift sanctions on Syria’s President

November 7, 2025 admin

Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa. File photo: Sputnik/Sergey Bobylyov/Pool via Reuters The U.N. Security Council on Thursday (November 6, 2025) voted to lift a series of sanctions on Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa and members of his government days before he is set to arrive in the U.S. for a historic visit to the White House. The…

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Syrian forces uncover drugs, weapons in Hezbollah-controlled Lebanese border

February 15, 2025 admin

In a desolate area of Syria where Lebanese militant group Hezbollah once held sway, security forces shot open the gates to an abandoned building and found a defunct drug factory. Syria’s new authorities launched a security campaign last week around Qusayr at the porous Lebanese border, cracking down on drug and weapons smugglers. They have…

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Assad’s Cousin, Who Suppressed 2011 Peaceful Protests, Arrested In Syria

February 1, 2025 admin

Damascus: Syria’s new authorities on Friday announced the arrest of a cousin of ousted leader Bashar al-Assad, accused of orchestrating a crackdown in Daraa, where the 2011 uprising began. Atif Najib, the former head of political security in Daraa in southern Syria, was arrested in Latakia, on the country’s west coast, the official SANA news…

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Syria’s New Leader Pledges “National Dialogue Conference”

January 30, 2025 admin

Damascus: Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, promised Thursday to hold a “national dialogue conference” in his first address to the nation since the fall of ousted leader Bashar al-Assad. Sharaa, who was appointed interim president a day earlier for an unspecified transitional period, vowed to preserve “civil peace” and Syria’s territorial unity. “We will announce…

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Syria Orders Freeze Of Bank Accounts Linked To Former Regime

January 23, 2025 admin

DAMASCUS: Syria’s central bank has ordered commercial banks to freeze all accounts tied to people and companies linked to the ousted regime of former President Bashar al-Assad, according to a document seen by Reuters and people familiar with the decision. The circular, issued on Thursday, calls on banks to “freeze all bank accounts of companies…

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Saudi Arabia urges Syria sanctions relief at talks with regional, EU diplomats

January 12, 2025 admin

Saudi Arabia on Sunday called for the lifting of sanctions on Syria after meetings with top diplomats from West Asia and Europe that focused on the war-ravaged country’s future. The Gulf kingdom, the region’s biggest economy, is seeking to increase its influence in Syria after Islamist-led rebels toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad last month, analysts…

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Mossad Spy Was Publicly Hanged By Syria In 1965. Israel Wants His Body Back

January 5, 2025 admin

New Delhi: Businessman Kamel Amin Thaabet arrived in the Syrian capital of Damascus in 1962. He threw lavish parties, became part of the city’s social elite and quickly gained access to the country’s most powerful men. Three years later, he was publicly executed in central Damascus’ Marjeh Square. Why? Because Kamel Thaabet was Eli Cohen,…

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Top European diplomats urge inclusive transition in Syria visit

January 3, 2025 admin

This handout picture released by the Syrian Arab News Agency SANA shows France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot (C-R), Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (L) meeting with Syria’s new ruler Ahmed al-Sharaa (C) and Asaad Shaybani, Foreign Minister for the interim Syrian government (R) in Damascus on January 3, 2025. Visiting French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot…

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US Army Veteran Indicted Over Attempts To Join Hezbollah

January 3, 2025 admin

Washington: A US Army veteran who allegedly went to Lebanon and Syria to try to join Hezbollah has been indicted for attempting to support a “terrorist” organization, the Justice Department said Thursday. Jack Danaher Molloy, 24, a dual US-Irish national, was arrested in Chicago last month and brought to Pennsylvania on Monday to face charges,…

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War Or Peace: What Will Become Of Middle East In 2025?

December 31, 2024 admin

Picture this: the current interim government in Syria, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), gives way to an elected government. Under this fledgling democratic setup, a phoenix-like Syria rises from the ashes of its long, bloody civil war. Millions of Syrian refugees and internally displaced people are returning home joyously; investors are trickling in; broken…

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