ع
Sections
  • Politics
  • Culture & Social Affairs
  • Business & Economy
  • Science & Technology
  • Documents & Memoirs
Regions
  • Gulf
  • MENA
  • Europe
  • USA
  • Asia
  • World
More
  • Videos
  • Cartoons
  • World in photos
  • Infographics
  • Profiles
  • Newsletter

LATEST ISSUE

Latest Issue
Magazine Archive
النسخة العربية
  • Politics
  • Culture & Social Affairs
  • Business & Economy
  • Science & Technology
  • Tag
  • Syria

A member of Syrian security forces stands near a vehicle carrying aid as they make their way to Sweida, at Bosra al-Sham town, near Deraa, Syria July 23, 2025. Karam al-Masri/Reuters

After Sweida: the path to peace just got more complicated

The terrible violence in southern Syria this month shows what needs to be done by all actors, and shows what fate awaits if they do not.

Michael Harari 24 July 2025
A member of the Internal Security Forces stands watch at a checkpoint in the village of Al-Mazra'a, after days of violence in Sweida between Bedouin fighters and Druze factions, on 20 July 2025. Karam al-Masri/Reuters

Solution needed: Sweida’s ceasefire is a pause, not peace

The guns may have fallen silent but in Syria's Druze-dominated southern city, they have enforced the status quo. That is dangerous, since it fails to recognise that Syria has now fundamentally changed

Haid Haid 21 July 2025
UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen backs the central government's desire for sovereignty over its territory but says that, in a transition period, this is best done through dialogue and by building trust. Al Majalla/AFP

UN envoy to Syria: true loyalty to the state cannot be coerced

Geir Pedersen condemns Israeli strikes and urges genuine dialogue between Syrian authorities and the local Druze community in Sweida.

Ibrahim Hamidi 18 July 2025
The Great Colonnade (Decumanus Maximus) at Palmyra, one of six Syrian sites on the UNESCO elite list of world heritage. All of them sustained some level of damage in the 13-year civil war. Omar Haj Kadour/AFP

The plundering of Syria's cultural heritage - Part 2

The second instalment of a two-part investigation into the unprecedented looting of Syria's archaeological sites, Al Majalla uncovers the destruction of a rich archaeological landscape

Abdul Rahman Mazhar Halloush 18 July 2025
US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf testifies during a hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee at the US Capitol on November 8, 2023. Alex Wong/Getty Images via AFP

Barbara Leaf: sectarian power-sharing not the answer in Syria

Al Majalla spoke to a seasoned diplomat who helped shape American policy on the Middle East during Joe Biden's presidency, asking her about Syria, US engagement, Iran, and Palestine.

Ahmed Maher 17 July 2025
A visitor makes sketches at Palmyra. During their occupation of the site from 2015, Islamic State (IS) jihadists reduced several temples, columns, and other treasures to heaps of stone. Omar Haj Kadour/AFP

The plundering of Syria’s cultural heritage - Part 1

The first instalment of a two-part investigation into the unprecedented looting of Syria's archaeological sites, Al Majalla uncovers the destruction of a rich archaeological landscape

Abdul Rahman Mazhar Halloush 16 July 2025
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa with Defence Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra and others in Damascus on 21 December 2024. They are now trying to create a parliament. Reuters

Between hope and doubt: the making of Syria’s new Parliament

While sham elections have been seen before, a genuinely representative elected legislature has not. The opportunity is huge, and early signs are good, but there are still far too many questions.

Haid Haid 13 July 2025
Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters sit on a vehicle in the north of Raqqa city, Syria. Reuters

Fading hopes that the SDF will agree to Syrian integration

The autonomous Kurdish-led group in Syria's north-east has been protected by the US for a decade, but the move now is towards integration with Damascus. Unfortunately, the SDF has not got the memo.

Charles Lister 11 July 2025
Israeli army soldiers add zip ties to the mast of an Israeli flag flying at a special area for exercises during a military drill in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights on July 8, 2025. Jalaa Marey/AFP

Why Syria and Israel should walk, not run, towards peace

This is a once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity to agree a détente between two hostile neighbours, but getting there is tricky. Several issues must (but can) be overcome.

Michael Harari 11 July 2025
A member of the Syrian security forces searches a defunct drug factory inside an abandoned building near the village of Hawik in the countryside of Al-Qusayr on February 12, 2025. LOUAI BESHARA / AFP

Redefining counter-narcotics in a new Syria

Challenges lie ahead for the new Syrian government as it seeks to close the gap in security policy

Caroline Rose 07 July 2025
  •  Load More
  • Popular
  • Editor's Pick
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, dressed in an IRGC uniform, chairs a session in Tehran on 1 February 2026. AFP
Profiles

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf: a possible US partner?

24 March 2026

Reports that the Trump administration is eyeing Iran's parliament speaker as an Iranian 'Delcy Rodriguez' has been dismissed in Tehran as fake news

Alex Vatanka
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Army Chief and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir pose with US President Donald Trump (C) at the White House in Washington, DC on 26 September 2025. AFP
Politics

Why Pakistan is well-placed to host US-Iran talks

24 March 2026

Islamabad is uniquely positioned to mediate between the warring parties. It also has more than enough reasons to want this war to end.

Kamal Alam
Mark Wallace (L), CEO of the non-profit United Against Nuclear Iran, talks with Rep. Mike Lawler (R) (R-NY) next to a Shahed 136 military drone during a press conference on Capitol Hill on 8 May 2025 in Washington, DC. WIN MCNAMEE / AFP
Business & Economy

Iran and the new arithmetic of war

23 March 2026

Cheap autonomous weapons are overturning the economics of combat—and teaching the United States important lessons.

Fareed Zakaria
Trump holding a Make America Great Again Hat AFP
Politics

Could the US-Iran war deliver Trump his own ‘Suez’ moment?

23 March 2026

The conflict will likely prompt political and economic shifts, even if the extent of those changes may not be known for years.

Christopher Phillips
A displaced woman sits next her tent in an unofficial camp, erected along Beirut’s seafront area on 22 March 2026. DIMITAR DILKOFF / AFP
Culture & Social Affairs

Beirut's daily grind: between refuge, ruin and routine

23 March 2026

Beirut continues to host exhibitions and sustain cultural life, but in a subdued, robotic fashion shaped by war and emotional numbness

Mimoza Al-Arrawi

Sign up for the Weekly Newsletter

Get the best of Al Majalla, straight to your inbox.

Your newsletter subscriptions are subject to Al Majalla privacy policy and terms and conditions.

OPINIONS

The end of Hezbollah?

Al Majalla - London
Al Majalla - London

Hezbollah's fate likely linked to US-Iran war outcome

Lina Khatib
Lina Khatib

Three scenarios for a post-Trump world

Hal Brands
Hal Brands

Why Europe’s response to the Iran war is so disjointed

Khattar Abu Diab
Khattar Abu Diab
MORE FROM OPINIONS
logo
  • Politics
  • Culture & Social Affairs
  • Business & Economy
  • Science & Technology
  • Documents & Memoirs
  • Gulf
  • MENA
  • Europe
  • USA
  • Asia
  • World
  • Videos
  • Cartoons
  • World in photos
  • Infographics
  • Profiles
  • About Al Majalla
  • Al Majalla Team
  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact us
logo

© Al Majalla Magazine. All Rights Reserved.

0:00:00
0:00:00