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  • Bashar Al-Assad

Former Syrian President Hafez al-Assad and his counterpart Elias Hrawi during their meeting in Damascus on March 14, 1998. AFP

Assad's fall could put Lebanon and Syria on divergent paths

The end of Assad's rule also means the end of his influence in Lebanon, and Lebanese politicians who served the interests of Damascus for decades could see their power drastically curtailed

Houssam Itani 13 December 2024
A woman inspects the cells of the famous Sednaya prison north of Damascus after the fall of the Assad regime.
 AP/Hussein Malla

Blood-curdling tales emerge from Assad's torture dungeons

Unravelling the horrors perpetrated in the darkest corners of Syria's prisons is chilling, nauseating, and crucial to understanding how this infernal machinery came into being—and continued operating

Samer Abou Hawwach 13 December 2024
Rebel forces shoot in the air as they celebrate in the central Syrian city of Homs early on December 8, 2024. Aref TAMMAWI / AFP

Is Syria heading for a bright new beginning or an even darker future?

Syrians are rejoicing over the overthrow of a despised dictator, but it could still be some time before they genuinely reap the benefits of liberation. The coming months will be telling.

Con Coughlin 11 December 2024
People hold a large Syrian opposition flag at Umayyad Square in Damascus on December 9, 2024. Omar HAJ KADOUR / AFP

The history of Syria's not-so-new flag

A flag that has become synonymous with opposition to Assad rule was actually the flag of the first Syrian Republic under French mandate. Al Majalla debunks regime lies about what this flag represents.

Sami Moubayed 11 December 2024

Assad flees Syria after lightening opposition offensive

Fares Garabet 09 December 2024
A portrait of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is pictured with its frame broken in a Syrian regime's Political Security Branch facility on the outskirts of the central city of Hama following its capture. OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP

Assad's fall: The end of an era

In just over a week, a lightning rebel offensive has collapsed five decades of draconian Assad rule. Al Majalla looks back at the political career of the former Syrian president.

Sami Moubayed 08 December 2024
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (right) at the G20 Summit on November 18, 2024, in Rio de Janeiro. ERIC LEE / AFP

Turkey tiptoes through the melee to soften al-Assad

Ankara and Damascus have been at daggers drawn for years but now have reasons to talk. Syria wants Turkish troops gone, while Turkey wants its Syrian refugees to go home. Let the bargaining begin.

Omer Onhon 26 November 2024
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attending the Arab summit in Riyadh, having been brought back in 'from the cold' by Arab leaders Reuters

Assad turns escalation in Gaza and Lebanon to his advantage

The Syrian president knows that war between Israel and Hezbollah will send diplomats hurriedly calling Damascus. After more than a decade in the diplomatic naughty corner, this is his moment

Haid Haid 19 August 2024
Six months after Iraq formed a new government, Iraqis have mixed views on al-Sudani's performance.

Iraq’s al-Sudani becomes the latest Turkey-Syria mediator

Muhammad Shia al-Sudani is hoping to help Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Syria's Bashar al-Assad mend fences, yet it is precisely the issue of fence security that means he will struggle.

Haid Haid 23 June 2024
Analysts have accused the Lebanese government of exploiting the issue of Syrian prisoners to secure additional funding from the international community shutterstock

What's behind Lebanon's Syrian prisoner extradition scheme?

Analysts have accused the Lebanese government of exploiting the issue of Syrian prisoners to secure additional funding from the international community

Haid Haid 12 May 2024
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Lina Jaradat
Politics

Trump, Sharaa, and the future of Syria

05 December 2025

There was visible warmth when the US and Syrian presidents met in the Oval Office last month, with some even speculating a Trump visit to Damascus. But there is much to do before that happens.

Robert Ford
AFP / Al Majalla
Politics

The GCC moves from ‘safe neutrality’ to ‘indivisible security’

05 December 2025

Following the unprecedented attacks on Qatar, Gulf leaders have pledged to forge a unified defence front, marking a historic shift from cautious neutrality to collective security

Omar Harkous
Jay Torres
Politics

The evolution of Latin America’s drug cartels

04 December 2025

What began as a locally rooted trade in coca leaves and opium evolved into a transnational system of cartels that challenged governments, corrupted institutions, and destabilised countries

Stefanie Butendieck Hijerra
AFP / Al Majalla
Politics

Why the US is asking Lebanon for its bomb back

05 December 2025

When Israel killed a Hezbollah military chief in late November, one GBU-39 bomb failed to detonate, leaving Washington worried that its adversaries could reverse engineer it

Michael Horowitz
Spanish poet Miriam Reyes Wikimedia Commons
Culture & Social Affairs

Spanish poet Miriam Reyes on escaping the prison of the page

03 December 2025

With her collection 'Con' having won Spain's 2025 National Poetry Prize, the Galician writer spoke to Al Majalla about the process of creation as she works on her first novel.

Mohammed Al-Bittari

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OPINIONS

In Gaza, bombed-out homes become death traps

Salem Al Rayyes
Salem Al Rayyes

Why Tunisian women are outpacing men in education

Asmahan Al-Sha’abouni
Asmahan Al-Sha’abouni

Syrians celebrate their first year without Assad

Fares Garabet
Fares Garabet

A once-forgotten Syria now teems with possibility

Ibrahim Hamidi
Ibrahim Hamidi
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