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Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces withdraw from Aleppo province after clashes with Syrian government
Following intense fighting between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Syrian government forces, SDF commander Mazloum Abdi ordered the withdrawal of his personnel from contested areas of Aleppo province.
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US military strikes Islamic State in Syria
US Central Command stated that the strikes were in “direct response to the deadly ISIS [Islamic State] attack on U.S. and Syrian forces in Palmyra, Syria, on Dec. 13, 2025.” However, the Islamic State has not claimed credit for that attack, which was carried out by a member of the Syrian security forces that are largely comprised of Al Qaeda’s former branch in Syria and Al Qaeda-allied groups.
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Syrian army besieges Kurdish neighborhoods in Aleppo following clashes
Syrian army units have surrounded the Kurdish-majority neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh in Aleppo, both of which are controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The siege, which followed clashes, is the latest escalation after the two sides failed to move forward on a March 2025 agreement to integrate the SDF into the government.
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Jordan carries out airstrikes in Syria against drug smugglers
The Kingdom of Jordan conducted airstrikes targeting drug smuggling networks in southern Syria between December 23 and 25. The Jordanians coordinated with regional partners, although reports did not specify whom. The strikes targeted rural areas near the Jordanian border in Syria’s southern Suwayda Governorate, which is currently controlled by Druze forces.
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US launches widespread airstrikes against Islamic State in Syria after deadly Palmyra attack
On December 19, US Central Command announced that US forces conducted “a large-scale strike against ISIS infrastructure and weapons sites in Syria.” Al Arabiya reported that the United States hit “70 ISIS targets in sites in central Syria.”
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US highlights anti-Islamic State operations after soldiers killed in Syria
US Central Command (CENTCOM) published new data in the wake of the killing of two American soldiers and an interpreter in Syria on December 13, showing that US and partner forces have carried out 80 operations in the country since July 2025. “We will continue to work closely with our Syrian partners to hunt down ISIS networks and prevent their resurgence,” Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of CENTCOM, said. There have also been several security operations in Syria and Iraq conducted by Syrian and Iraqi security forces in the wake of the attack.
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Syria investigates deadly attack on US forces, US names 2 National Guard soldiers as victims
The Iowa National Guard released the names of two US soldiers who were killed by an Islamic State member in Syria on December 13. In the aftermath of the attack, Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al Shaibani spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on December 14 and said the Syrian government would work with the US to degrade and destroy the Islamic State (IS). Syria’s Interior Ministry also conducted an anti-IS operation and detained five people. In northern Syria, an armed group killed four Syrian Interior Ministry personnel.
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3 Americans killed, 3 injured in Islamic State ambush attack in Palmyra, Syria
US Central Command announced that “two U.S. service members and one U.S. civilian were killed, and three service members were injured, as a result of an ambush by a lone [Islamic State] gunman in Syria.” A Syrian government official confirmed reports that the attacker was a member of the government’s security forces, stating that he had been under investigation and may have had “extremist ideas.”
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Israel-Syria tensions continue after Israeli raid as White House urges ‘dialogue’
Tensions between Israel and Syria have continued in the wake of an Israeli raid in southern Syria on November 27. On December 4, Syria accused Israel of a new incursion into the Yarmouk Basin near the Golan. US President Donald Trump has called for a dialogue between Israel and Syria.
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Instability grows in Syria’s Druze heartland as ‘National Guard’ militia arrests opponents
On November 29, members of Suwayda’s National Guard, a militia affiliated with Druze spiritual leader Hikmat al Hijri, carried out a series of arrests against political opponents in Syria’s predominantly Druze Suwayda province.
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Israel’s Beit Jinn raid highlights potential Hamas-linked networks in southern Syria
On November 27, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched an operation in the southern Syrian village of Beit Jinn to arrest operatives linked to the Lebanese Muslim Brotherhood.
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Palestinian Islamic Jihad reportedly rebuilding its presence in Syria
Israel’s public broadcaster KAN reported on November 26 that Palestinian Islamic Jihad has been “increasingly strengthening its military wing in Syria in recent weeks,” particularly around Palestinian refugee camps in Damascus.
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Clashes erupt between Syrian government troops and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces
On November 19, the Syrian Army and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) battled near Maadan, Syria. While the two factions have not entered into full-blown conflict, tensions between them are rising as the end-of-year deadline for an integration agreement signed in March 2025 approaches.
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Israeli prime minister and top officials visit Syria ‘buffer zone’ as Israel-Syria talks stall
On November 19, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited a buffer zone in southern Syria that is controlled by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The zone, which the IDF took over after the fall of the Bashar al Assad regime in December 2024, has been a source of tension between Israel and Syria. Netanyahu led a large Israeli delegation, including government ministers and commanders, to the area and said Israel’s presence there is of “immense importance.” Syrian officials condemned the visit as reports emerged of security talks between Israel and Syria hitting a “dead end.”
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United States reportedly eyes military foothold in Damascus, Syrian official denies the claim
A Reuters report claims that the United States will establish a military presence at an airbase in Damascus, Syria, “to help enable” a security agreement between Syria and Israel.
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PKK announcement of withdrawal from Turkey has ramifications for Iraq, Syria
On October 26, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) announced that it was withdrawing its fighters from Turkey as part of a peace process with the Turkish government. Media reports indicate that the PKK may be moving to northern Iraq, leading to questions about how the withdrawal may affect the Kurdish regions of eastern Syria and northern Iraq.
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SDF moves forward with integration into new Syrian security forces
The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are moving forward on integration with the security forces of the Syrian transitional government. SDF leader Mazloum Abdi has given several interviews saying that a preliminary agreement has been made with Damascus.
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US kills Al Qaeda-linked ‘attack planner’ in Syria
The US military killed Muhammad Abd al Wahhab al Ahmad, a “senior Al-Qaeda affiliated attack planner” who was a member of Ansar Islam. Ahmad was killed in Idlib province, the stronghold of the Syrian government, where Ansar Islam operates with the government’s approval.
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After sectarian clashes in Aleppo, US, SDF, and Syrian government officials meet in Damascus
Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa met with US Envoy Tom Barrack and the head of US Central Command, Admiral Brad Cooper, in Damascus on October 7. The meeting came in the wake of clashes between factions backed by the Syrian transitional government and Kurdish fighters in two neighborhoods in Aleppo. The head of the Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazlum Abdi, also met with Syria’s defense minister and agreed to a ceasefire between the SDF and government forces. Barrack, Cooper, and Abdi separately met in eastern Syria on October 6 to discuss integration between Syria’s east and Damascus, plus continued operations against…
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Generation Jihad | Shilling for Sharaa
Ahmad Sharawi is back with Bill Roggio to discuss the ongoing spectacle of Syrian interim President and former Al Qaeda member Ahmed al Sharaa, from massacres whitewashed and sanctions lifted with no conditions to foreign fighters handed Syrian citizenship — in its rush to embrace him, is the West willfully ignoring Sharaa’s blood-soaked past?
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Syrian integration in focus as Syrian President Sharaa speaks at UN
Syrian transitional President Ahmed al Sharaa spoke at the United Nations General Assembly on September 24, urging support for rebuilding Syria and emphasizing the need for peace and stability in the country. Separately, a spokesperson for the largely Kurdish-run Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) said there was increasing pressure on Damascus and AANES authorities in eastern Syria to come to an agreement, despite recent clashes.
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Generation Jihad | SATC: Sharaa and the City
Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa is in New York City this week, headlining the UN General Assembly (UNGA), fraternizing with world leaders, and meeting with senior Trump administration officials like Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He was even hosted by a prominent think tank for a fireside chat with General David Petraeus, a self-described “fan.” Why is everyone so eager to embrace someone with a record of terror? Tom Joscelyn is back with Bill Roggio to unpack Washington’s stunning, but not surprising, amnesia.
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Israel and Syria close to a security agreement
On September 23, US Special Envoy for Syria Thomas Barrack claimed that Syria and Israel “are close to striking a ‘de-escalation’ agreement in which Israel will stop its attacks while Syria will agree not to move any machinery or heavy equipment near the Israeli border.”
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Israel strikes IRGC in Lebanon, reports Qods Force arrests in Syria
Israel killed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Hezbollah member Wissam Saeed Jubai in southern Lebanon and struck Hezbollah compounds in the Beqaa Valley as reports indicate Tehran is seeking new financial channels to sustain Hezbollah after Assad’s collapse. The IDF separately revealed the arrests of Qods Force Unit 840 operatives in Syria, part of Jerusalem’s renewed efforts against Tehran’s proxies in the Levant.
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Profiles of militias in newly formed Druze national guard in Suwayda, Syria
On August 23, armed factions in the Suwayda province in Syria announced the formation of a National Guard under the leadership of the Druze spiritual leader Hikmat al Hijri.
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Tensions grow between Damascus and eastern Syria amid continuing efforts to integrate factions
Conflicts between the Syrian transitional government in Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) pose challenges for the transitional government as it seeks to integrate factions. Syrian state media claimed on September 2 that the government’s internal security force had intercepted an arms shipment destined for the SDF, plus reported other recent clashes between security forces and the SDF, which the SDF has denied. Despite these tensions, negotiations between authorities in eastern Syria and Damascus continue amid US support.
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US-led raid kills senior Islamic State ‘official’ in Syria
US forces carried out a raid in northern Syria on August 19 that killed “a senior [Islamic State] member and key financier who planned attacks in Syria and Iraq,” CENTCOM stated. It is the latest raid on the Islamic State in Syria since a July 25 operation near Aleppo killed one of the group’s commanders.
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Sunni Arab tribes mobilize against the Syrian Democratic Forces
Several Sunni Arab tribes in northeast Syria, which encompasses 30 percent of the country and is currently under the control of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), have called for a general mobilization against the SDF.
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Turkey ramps up military support for Syria
The Turkish Ministry of Defense announced that Turkish Minister of Defense Yasar Guler and Syrian Minister of Defense Murhaf Abu Qusra signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the training of Syrian troops and a military consultancy after talks in Ankara.
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Clashes erupt in Syria’s Suwayda following US-brokered ceasefire
On August 3, clashes between local Druze militias, Sunni Arab tribal forces, and Syrian government troops reignited in Syria’s Suwayda province after a two-week hiatus following a US-brokered ceasefire.
