HTS leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani said that all rebel factions in Syria would "be disbanded and the fighters trained to join the ranks of the defense ministry
Iranian president Raisi to visit Syria ‘in the near future’
Raisi's planned trip comes against the backdrop of a rapprochement between regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia, and increased Arab engagement with Damascus. Amir-Abdollahian said the Riyadh-Tehran detente would have "positive repercussions on the whole region and in Lebanon in particular".
Saudi top diplomat heads to Syria for first visit since war
Recent months have seen increasing Arab engagement with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who has been politically isolated in the region since the war broke out. A flurry of regional diplomatic activity has been underway in the past week as regional relations shift following a decision by Saudi Arabia and Iran...
After Iran deal, KSA in talks with Syria to resume consular services
Riyadh has been hinting at a rapprochement with Syria for weeks. It sent aid to both rebel-held and government-controlled parts of the country in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake that struck southeastern Turkey and northern Syria on February 6, killing tens of thousands of people.
Hamas in first Syria visit in decade as relations thaw
Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, was one of Assad's closest allies but left Syria in 2012 after condemning his government's brutal suppression of peaceful protests in March 2011, which triggered the country's descent into civil war. "The Hamas delegation arrived in Damascus on a two-day visit," during which Palestinian...
Lebanon: small, multi-religious Mideast country
Lebanon is going through a severe economic crisis, described by the World Bank as one of the world's worst since the 1850s.
