Syria

Read recent Syrian news stories and current events on Newser.com

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US Airstrike Hits Syria Target Tied to Iran-Backed Militias

Attack is first military action taken under Biden

(Newser) - President Biden ordered an airstrike in Syria on Thursday, after recent rocket attacks launched on US forces in Iraq. The target was a structure thought to be used for smuggling weapons by two Shia militias backed by Iran, CNN reports. The goal of the US attack was to hurt the...

A Ruling Against a 'Small Fish' Is Being Hailed as Historic

Germany for first time convicts Syrian regime officer of crimes against humanity

(Newser) - A landmark decision in Koblenz, Germany, on Wednesday marks the first time a court outside of Syria has ruled in a case involving officials with Bashar al-Assad's regime who are accused of committing crimes against humanity. The Guardian calls it "a historic first victory for efforts worldwide to...

Boy Was Forced to Threaten Trump. Now, 'It's All Behind Me'

Matthew, now 13, was just 10 when stepfather made him appear in ISIS propaganda video

(Newser) - In April 2015, an 8-year-old American boy named Matthew was dragged into Syria by his mother, Samantha Sally, and stepfather, Moussa Elhassani, with Elhassani determined to become a sniper for the Islamic State. Five years later, Matthew is 13 and back in the US, and he's now telling the...

WH's Top Counterterrorism Official Had Secret Syrian Meeting

Kash Patel visited for negotiations on Austin Tice, other hostages—the first such visit in 10 years

(Newser) - American journalist Austin Tice disappeared in Syria eight years ago, and is believed to have been a captive there since. Now, in what Bloomberg calls a "rare sign of diplomacy," sources say the White House's top counterterrorism official has traveled there for secret talks to negotiate for...

Unusual Heat Wave Sets Off Chaotic Chain Reaction

Wildfires, mass evacuations, and detonating land mines in the Middle East

(Newser) - Wildfires around the Middle East triggered by a heat wave hitting the region have killed two people, forced thousands of people to leave their homes, and detonated land mines along the Lebanon-Israel border, state media and officials said Saturday. The areas hit by the heat wave are Syria, Lebanon, Israel,...

In Case of the ISIS 'Beatles,' a Milestone

El Shafee Elsheikh, Alexanda Kotey are indicted, accused of beheadings, torture of Westerners

(Newser) - The Justice Department unsealed charges Wednesday against two Islamic State militants from Britain, accusing them of carrying out a gruesome campaign of torture, beheadings, and other acts of violence against Western hostages they'd captured in Syria, including four Americans. El Shafee Elsheikh and Alexanda Kotey are two of four...

Trump Changes Story on Assassinating Assad

He now says he wanted to have Syrian leader killed, but 'terrible general' Mattis objected

(Newser) - President Trump slammed former Defense Secretary James Mattis Tuesday—but also backed up a report he had criticized Bob Woodward for writing in 2018. Trump told Fox & Friends that he wanted to assassinate Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in 2017, but Mattis objected. "I would have rather taken him...

US Commander: Islamic State Is Growing Yet Again

Gen. Frank McKenzie sees trouble brewing

(Newser) - Elements of the Islamic State group are working to rebuild in western Syria, where the US has little visibility or presence, the top US commander for the Middle East warned on Wednesday, the AP reports. In the region west of the Euphrates River where the Syrian regime is in control...

Iran: US Fighter Jets Came Within 100 Meters of Plane

US official says single fighter jet came no closer than 1K meters

(Newser) - Several passengers aboard an Iranian jet flying from Tehran to Beirut were injured Thursday when the plane was "harassed" by US fighter jets over Syria, according to Iranian and Syrian media. Syrian state media reported that two jets, part of the US-led coalition against the Islamic State, "intercepted"...

Thousands of Refugees Mass at EU Border

They gather at Turkey's western border to enter Greece

(Newser) - Thousands of migrants and refugees massed at Turkey's western frontier Sunday, trying to enter Greece by land and sea after Turkey said its borders were open to those hoping to head to Europe, the AP reports. In Syria, Turkish troops shot down two Syrian warplanes after the Syrian military...

This Might Be the Worst Moment in Syria&#39;s 9-Year War
His Daughter Froze to Death.
She Wasn't the Only One
in case you missed it
Feb 29, 2020 1:30 PM CST

His Daughter Froze to Death. She Wasn't the Only One

The battle for Idlib is causing a mass exodus, and children are dying

(Newser) - If you've grown somewhat numb to the nine-year-old Syrian civil war, this week's headlines may be enough to give you a jolt: "Syria's worst humanitarian catastrophe in its ... civil war is now unfolding," proclaims Vox . "Children Freeze to Death as Attack Prompts Largest Exodus...

Thursday Deaths Mark Serious Escalation in Syria

Attack raises risk of Turkey, Russia confrontation

(Newser) - Turkey says a Syrian government airstrike on its forces in northwestern Syria Thursday night killed 33 of its troops, the highest number of Turkish soldiers killed in a single day since Ankara first intervened in the Syrian conflict in 2016. The deaths were a serious escalation in the direct conflict...

Assad Wins Back 'Coveted Prize' in Syria's Civil War

Loss of M5 is a massive blow to rebels

(Newser) - It is arguably one of the most coveted prizes in Syria's civil war, and after eight years of fighting, Syrian President Bashar Assad has got it back. The Damascus-Aleppo highway, or the M5, is known to Syrians simply as the "International Road." Cutting through all of Syria'...

Syria 'Evicts Terrorists' From Rebel Highway

The government takes more ground from insurgents

(Newser) - Syrian government forces captured new areas from insurgents in their efforts to control a key highway in the northwest Saturday, as Turkey sent more reinforcements into the war-torn country, state media and opposition activists said, per the AP . The weekslong government offensive has created a humanitarian crisis with about 600,...

Report: Airstrikes Triggered 'Huge Explosion' on Syria-Iraq Border

Activists say unidentified planes hit targets

(Newser) - Unidentified planes struck targets in Syria near the border with Iraq on Friday, reports said, triggering "a huge explosion" amid soaring tensions in the region between the US and Iran. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the planes targeted positions belonging to pro-Iran militias in the Boukamal area,...

Putin Visits Iran Ally Over 'Escalating' Tensions

Russia's president makes his second visit to Syria during its civil war

(Newser) - Russian President Vladimir Putin traveled to Damascus on Tuesday for a meeting with President Bashar Assad, a rare visit that comes amid soaring tensions between Iran and United States following the US drone strike that killed a top Iranian general, the AP reports. While the official statements made during the...

US: We Just Hit Iran and Syria
US: We Just Hit Iraq and Syria
Dec 29, 2019 12:32 PM CST

US: We Just Hit Iraq and Syria

The US is targeting militia blamed for killing an American

(Newser) - The US says it has carried out military strikes in Iraq and Syria targeting a militia blamed for an attack that killed an American contractor, the AP reports. US forces conducted "precision defensive strikes" against five sites of Kataeb Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Iraqi militia, Defense Department official Jonathan Hoffman...

Cause of Death for Founder of Aid Group Revealed

White Helmets' James Le Mesurier fell last month from third-floor apartment

(Newser) - One of the founders of a renowned humanitarian group died as the result of a fall from his third-story apartment in Turkey, reports the BBC . A post-mortem report on James Le Mesurier, who helped launch the White Helmets group in Syria, determined his cause of death to be "general...

Israel Strikes Dozens of Iranian Targets in Syria

Country says it was retaliating for rocket attack

(Newser) - The Israeli military said it struck dozens of Iranian targets in Syria in Wednesday, carrying out a "wide-scale" strike in response to rocket fire on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights the day before. The military said its fighter jets hit multiple targets belonging to the elite Quds force, including surface-to-air...

Erdogan Played Anti-Kurd Film in Oval Office. It Didn't Go Well

Lindsey Graham among GOP senators left miffed

(Newser) - President Trump had to umpire a tense exchange between Republican senators and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday, which reportedly began when Erdogan aired a propaganda film against Syria's Kurds. Axios first reported that five Republican senators critical of Turkey's incursion into Syria watched as Erdogan whipped...

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