Women are notably absent from efforts by independent political formations to gain a foothold in opposition-held northwestern Syria, an area dominated by armed factions.
Women’s participation in institutions governing northwestern Syria is “virtually nonexistent,” even though there are no legal prohibitions on them holding positions in either Salvation Government or Syrian Interim Government bodies.
Six years after HTS forces left southern Syria, the hardline faction is back in Daraa province in the form of small groups made up of former fighters and new local recruits.
Demonstrators in northwestern Syria continue to demand the fall of HTS leader Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, while authorities offer concessions with one hand and crack down on protests with the other.
Bombings across northern Syria this month—by the Syrian regime and Russia against the HTS-controlled northwest, and by Turkey in the SDF-controlled northeast—have something in common: killing civilians and damaging infrastructure.
Following the killing of five Kurds in Jenderes by Turkish-backed forces in March, HTS intervened in SNA territory for the second time in six months, underscoring al-Jolani’s ambitions of territorial expansion and highlighting his use of ethnic and religious minorities to make a case for himself.
In 2022, Syria’s humanitarian, political and economic crisis reached new depths. How did the year unfold, and what can be expected in 2023?
In the last opposition-controlled parts of Syria, journalists and media activists face restrictions, red lines and retaliation.
Some HTS forces that entered northern Aleppo province during recent infighting between Turkish-backed opposition factions withdrew to Idlib this week, but concerns about the hardline faction’s sustained influence remain.
This week, the Syrian National Army’s Hamza Division was implicated in the assassination of a prominent opposition activist and his pregnant wife, sparking ongoing clashes, protests and calls for the faction to be eliminated.
