Syria

Syria has experienced a transformative period marked by the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024. Yet, critical challenges persist, including foreign incursions, the resurgence of ISIS and other extremist groups, and deep-seated economic challenges. Opportunities have also arisen, such as the suspension of U.S. sanctions. CSIS experts explore issues such as governance, counterterrorism, geostrategy, economics, and migration in the aftermath of one of the defining conflicts of the early twenty-first century.

Recent Analysis

Photo: AFP/Getty Images

Photo: AFP/Getty Images

Preparing for the Next Crisis

This installment of Charting the Middle East highlights the importance of early warning systems, emergency communications, and community-based warning mechanisms amid recurrent surges of conflict in the region.

Newsletter by Josiane Atallah — November 5, 2026

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Recent Events

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Related Programs

Experts

Jon Alterman

Jon B. Alterman

Zbigniew Brzezinski Chair in Global Security and Geostrategy
Seth G. Jones

Seth G. Jones

President, Defense and Security Department; Harold Brown Chair
Daniel Byman

Daniel Byman

Director, Warfare, Irregular Threats, and Terrorism Program
Will Todman

Will Todman

Chief of Staff, Geopolitics and Foreign Policy Department; and Senior Fellow, Middle East Program
Alexander Palmer

Alexander Palmer

Deputy Director and Fellow, Warfare, Irregular Threats, and Terrorism Program

All Syria Content

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Preparing for the Next Crisis

This installment of Charting the Middle East highlights the importance of early warning systems, emergency communications, and community-based warning mechanisms amid recurrent surges of conflict in the region.

Newsletter by Josiane Atallah — November 5, 2026

Risk to Refugee Return

This installment of Charting the Middle East highlights how the scale of unexploded ordnance (UXO) contamination, relative to returning populations, varies across Syria.

Newsletter by Ninar Fawal — October 22, 2026

The Price of Exclusion

This installment of Charting the Middle East spotlights how Western aid cuts have rendered the current international response to Syrian refugees obsolete.

Newsletter by Will Todman — October 7, 2026

Fueling Discontent 

This installment of Charting the Middle East traces the rapid rise in government-set fuel prices in Syria, highlighting how the Iran war’s economic effects are introducing new risks to regional stability.

Newsletter by Mona Yacoubian and Kira Nygren — September 24, 2026

Open for Business

This installment of Charting the Middle East spotlights growing trade volumes between Syria and select countries or regions since the fall of Assad and the lifting of sanctions.

Newsletter by Philip Luck — August 20, 2026