Finding few other options, many women and girls in the Deir e-Zor countryside spend their days in the fields as hourly farmworkers, facing difficult conditions for meager pay.
Bombardment by Syrian regime forces and affiliated militias has killed and injured dozens of people in SDF-controlled villages and towns in Deir e-Zor since Iran-backed Arab tribal forces launched an attack on the eastern countryside six days ago.
Iran-backed Arab tribal forces attacked the US-backed SDF in Deir e-Zor this week, briefly overrunning security positions and sparking heightened security measures in neighboring Hasakah province amid fears of further escalation.
US support for the SDF in 2023 clashes in Deir e-Zor has provided Iran with a critical opportunity to expand its influence in Syria, researcher Ömer Özkizilcik writes.
After facing major local, regional and international pushback—including a Turkish threat to invade northeastern Syria—the AANES postponed municipal elections scheduled for this week until August, citing “internal” reasons and "the demands of the political parties and alliances participating."
A sharp decrease in the wheat price set by the AANES sparked protests and has left northeastern Syria’s farmers questioning the economic viability of cultivating their land next season.
Women returning to Raqqa from the al-Hol detention camp face major challenges as they seek to turn the page on their past. While they describe themselves as victims, some of their neighbors still view them as part of the Islamic State.
Amid fears of war between Israel and Hamas spiraling into a regional conflagration, analysts weigh the impact of regional players and assess the likelihood of another front in Syria.
In Deir e-Zor province, nearly two weeks of clashes between the Syrian Democratic Forces and Arab clans calling for self rule have come to an end, but residents are uneasy about what the future holds “after the clans were defanged.”
Ground shelling continued on Friday after days of heavy Turkish airstrikes on territory held by Kurdish forces in Syria and Iraq, while Turkish President Erdoğan renewed his vow to launch a long-threatened ground operation in northern Syria
