(The National)- One of the common sentences repeatedly said by Syrians from the two main warring sides is that the solution to the conflict is attainable when the “big guys” decide to end it. Those big guys – at the UN Security Council – passed a unanimous decision on Friday calling...

(The Guardian)- The United Nations’ sanctions monitoring team warned last Tuesday that Libya was emerging as a key stronghold for Islamic State close to the shorelines of Europe. The warning aligns with assessments by US intelligence officials that the organisation’s franchise is...

Turkey’s downing of a Russian jet has played into the hands of Syrian President Bashar Assad by bringing Moscow on board with his bitter opposition to Ankara, experts say. Moscow announced Thursday it was preparing economic measures against Ankara two days after Turkish forces shot down a...

The Syria war is escalating in tandem with intensified diplomacy, but neither growing foreign military intervention nor a revived political track look capable of bringing an end to the 4-1/2-year-old conflict. The risk is a more ferocious proxy war between President Bashar...

(The Independent)- Turkey’s downing of a fighter jet on Tuesday is thought to be the first time a Nato member has shot down a Russian aircraft since the Cold War, risking a dangerous increase in international tensions. Vladimir Putin was quick to warn of “serious consequences”...

(The Guardian)- The authors of this article are the current and the three former presidents of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces Terror has returned to the streets of Paris. So, too, has the realisation that international efforts to defeat terrorism...

Hundreds of innocent people have been killed in spectacular attacks claimed by Islamic State militants from Syria, but diplomats say major powers are no closer to a peace deal to end nearly five years of bloodshed and chaos there. Meeting in Vienna the day after Friday night's...

By Emad Mostaque Daesh, the Arabic acronym for Islamic State, can be viewed as the most disruptive start-up ever devised. It uses modern technology to spread its message, radicalizing people in a matter of weeks rather than months or years. It also enables its recruits and acolytes to...

John Herbst, a former U.S. diplomat, wasn’t trying to flatter his German hosts when he took a dig at Washington late last month — he was just describing a new reality. “Berlin is the critical capital in the West for settling a just solution to the crisis in Ukraine,” he said while...

(IBTimes)- The Syrian regime is hoping it’s a case of fourth time lucky as they attempt to retake the northwestern province of Aleppo for the fourth time since the Syrian conflict started in March 2011. The operation has, with the help of Russian airstrikes, enabled forces loyal to...

Ever since they expelled ISIL from Tal Abyad in mid-June, Syria’s Kurds have been at the centre of many rumours. In particular, there has been talk of upcoming battles against ISIL in northern Syria, including Kurdish-Russian cooperation. The idea of a Kurdish-led offensive to capture Raqqa...

Almost 80 percent of Russia's declared targets in Syria have been in areas not held by Islamic State, a Reuters analysis of Russian Defence Ministry data shows, undermining Moscow's assertions that its aim is to defeat the group. The majority of strikes, according to the...

Turnout was so low in the first round of Egypt's parliamentary elections, that satirist Bassem Youssef derided it as an ingenious strategy to show the world Egypt had rid itself of its notorious overcrowding. Empty polling stations highlight disillusionment with Egypt's chaotic...

The Syrian city of Aleppo is only 45 kilometers away from the Bab al-Hawa crossing along the Turkish border. Thousands of Iranian soldiers and fighters, preparing for the biggest military battle of the Syrian revolution since it began in 2011, are marching toward Aleppo, Syria’s most populated...

Nearly two weeks after the Russian intervention began in Syria, one could say it has not got off to a good start. Last week, the Syrian regime launched its first ground offensive against the rebels under Russian air support. The assault, in Hama’s northern countryside, failed spectacularly –...

Vladimir Putin turned 63 this week with his now traditional display of sporting prowess, and an announcement that Russian naval vessels had launched a wave of missiles against Islamic State in Syria. The Russian leader has never appeared more confident and his grip on power...

The Bassel al-Assad Airbase in Syria’s northwestern Lattakia province -- believed to host 32 planes, 16 helicopters, nine tanks, two land-to-air missile defense systems and a 2,000-strong staff of Russian officers -- represents Russia’s most significant military asset in Syria. Russia is now...

Russia's air strikes in Syria are in part designed to extract concessions from the West over Ukraine by making Moscow a key player in any attempts by world powers to hammer out a post-conflict settlement in Damascus, some Western officials believe. While the Syrian capital lies...

The worsening war in Syria, allegations of child sexual abuse by U.N. peacekeepers and the mishandling of the Ebola epidemic cast a spotlight on the inadequacies of the United Nations in a globalized world, operating with a power structure that hasn’t changed since 1945. With age, the...

For Vladimir Putin, Russia's military build-up in Syria is a potential diplomatic trump card and a handy way of diverting attention from Ukraine's frozen conflict. But it was a panicky realization that the Syrian government was being turned over on the battlefield that tipped the...