Syrian businesses in Turkey flourish and start to compete with their Turkish counterparts, creating job opportunities and raising wages for thousands of families
Restrictions by ISIS and the Syrian regime as well as severe exploitation by pharmaceuticals dealers have resulted in a terrible health situation in Deir-ez-Zor
Syrians face increasing challenges in educating their children in Turkish schools after the government’s decision to enforce the Turkish curriculum for different grades
Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad denied Amnesty reports on mass killing in a Syrian prison and said President Donald Trump’s ban on Syrians targeted terrorists, not the Syrian people. Below is the full interview he gave to French TF1 TV and EUROPE 1 Radio as appeared in SANA, the Syrian news agency
Opposition is sticking to its position that Assad can have no role in the transition, saying “the heavy price paid by the Syrian people” would have been wasted if he remained in power
The recent inclusion of Amman into the Astana consultations bloc may herald the end of Jordanian support for the Free Syrian Army in southern Syria, writes Samer Dahi for loyalist Al-Watan
Turkey’s numerous transgressions, as well as the late arrival of its delegation to the meetings, proves its lack of seriousness and “clear will” to hinder dialogue, state media quotes Syrian government envoy as saying
Sada al-Sham reveals story behind scores of women held prisoner for years, and the attempts by civilians and activists to negotiate their release in the face of negligence from authorities
Turkish president announces plans to clear Raqqa of ISIS as well as 4,000-5,000 sq. km of land in Syria’s north to establish safe zones, while regime forces set sights on the Ghouta of the capital Damascus and the country’s south
Opposition website Enab Baladi reports on the eleventh-hour struggle between political and armed opposition groups to form a delegation for next week’s negotiations in Geneva with the Assad regime
An interview with Kheder Khaddour on why, despite its weak fighting capabilities, the Syrian army remains a key element of the regime’s survival strategy. Here is the second part of the interview.
“It’s different when I wear a Syrian hijab because the Turks believe that I won’t understand them and so they avoid me and don’t speak with me.” As debate continues in the West around the compatibility of the hijab with European values, Enab Baladi speaks to Syrian women in Turkey about their reasons for adopting the the Anatolian version of the head covering
Opposition outlet AlSouria Net speaks with the Syrian actor and member of the Cairo platform about next week’s negotiations in Geneva with the Assad regime, the role rebel groups will play, as well as Moscow’s intentions surrounding the political process in Syria
Various opposition groups are refusing to cooperate to form a delegation for the upcoming Geneva negotiations with the Assad regime, as rifts emerge between the HNC and rebel leaders who participated in the Astana meetings late last month, Ibrahim Hamidi writes
Saudi-based opposition newspaper reports on accidental killing of three Turkish soldiers in Russian operation near Syria’s northern border, as Putin attributes blunder to ineffectual military partnership between the two countries
Political opposition stands its ground against attempts by Moscow to influence the make-up of its negotiating delegation at the upcoming Geneva talks, while the US presidency begins meetings with UN and regional leaders on the Syrian issue, Sada al-Sham writes
President Assad told Belgian media that statements made by Trump are promising regarding the priority of fighting terrorists, and mainly ISIS. Below is the full text as appeared on SANA:
In Saudi-owned Al-Hayat, Ibrahim Hamidi breaks down the current struggle for representation at the upcoming negotiations as well as the tug of war around prioritizing the political and military tracks
In the lead-up to the Syria talks in Geneva, attendees should prepare for the US president to shift focus from the political process to the issue of establishing safe zones, Ali Dahi writes in loyalist Al-Watan
Russia says regular meetings will be held in the Kazakh capital, and will include representatives from the Syrian government and opposition along with other countries, with the aim of working towards implementing the peace process, according to state media
