Latest Articles about Syria
Russia Makes Further Gains in Syria After Helsinki
In the past several days, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and the first deputy defense minister and chief of the General Staff, General Valery Gerasimov, went on an unprecedented joint trip to Israel, Germany and France to promote a new plan to rebuild Syria and... MORE
Russia, Iran and the Middle East: What Comes Next?
In Helsinki, Finland, where he was attending a summit with United States President Donald Trump, on July 16, Russian President Vladimir Putin remarked that restoring peace and harmony to Syria could become an effective example of Russo-US cooperation. And he added that both states have... MORE
Briefs
Syria: Government Forces Move on the South Syrian government forces have begun their assault on parts of Syria’s southwest, effectively ending a ceasefire agreement in place since last year and raising fears that Iranian-backed fighters could be left to infiltrate the area. In the weeks... MORE
Russia, Israel and Iran Strike a Deal in Syria
Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman visited Moscow, on May 31, for talks with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and other Russian top brass. Lieberman was accompanied by several of his country’s top military officials, including the Israeli Defense Forces’ (IDF) military intelligence chief, Major General Tamir... MORE
The Fall of Islamic State’s Female Militants: A Case Study
As an increasing number of Islamic State (IS) female militants have been captured and sentenced to death after the collapse of the so-called “caliphate,” gender roles within the group have been deconstructed once more. This process marks the fall of female militancy within the terrorist... MORE
Islamic State After Syria: A Dangerous New Stronghold in the Sinai
Having once held domain over some eight million people and controlled territory reaching nearly to Baghdad, Islamic State (IS) has undergone a monumental decline. Where the group was once in control of massive swathes of northeastern Syria and western Iraq, its so-called caliphate has since... MORE
Heading al-Qaeda’s Syrian Resurgence: An Updated Profile of Abu Humam al-Shami
On February 27, 2018, a new jihadist entity calling itself Hurras al-Din (Guardians of the Religion) released a statement through social media channels announcing its establishment in Syria (al-Modon, March 2). In the statement, Hurras al-Din urged fellow Muslims to assist the jihadists fighting against... MORE
The Next Doku Umarov? The Rise of Chechen Commander Abdul Hakim al-Shishani
In summer 2017, leaders of the three main factions of the Syrian opposition with fighters from the Caucasus, Muslim al-Shishani, Abdul Hakim al-Shishani and Salahuddin al-Shishani, released a joint video message, where they reaffirmed neutrality in the confrontation between the Syrian rebel groups Akhrar al-Sham... MORE
Russia’s Armed Forces Strive for Command-and-Control Superiority in the Modern Battlespace
Russia’s General Staff has a long-established interest in automatizing and enhancing command and control, which has shown remarkable advances since the reform of the Armed Forces was initiated in 2008. These changes, propelled forward by recent experience of combat operations in Ukraine and Syria, are... MORE
Russia Retreats From International Developments
The end of April was extraordinarily rich in high-profile international events—and Russia was conspicuously absent from all these dynamics. The president of South Korea and the North Korean dictator planted a pine tree of peace just to the south of the ceasefire line that still... MORE