US air strikes in Syria and the fight against the Islamic State
Both Assad and his rebel opponents hope to leverage the US fight against the Islamic State to help them win the civil war.
Syria
Europe desperately seeking answers on Iraq
While the crisis in Iraq deepens, Europe has been slow to react – reluctant to be drawn into another quagmire in the region.
To fix Iraq, don’t lose sight of Syria
A fundamental ingredient is still missing in shaping a coherent – though challenging – strategy for targeting IS in Iraq
Syria and Iraq: One conflict or two?
Recent weeks have highlighted more clearly than ever the growing symbiosis between the conflicts in Syria and Iraq.
Syria after the elections: Assad victorious?
Assad's “election” and the Syrian quagmire
Europe turns to the ICC on Syria – a sign of hopelessness?
The EU's call to refer Syria to the International Criminal Court stands as a reminder of how few options the EU has
Syria: the worst foreign policy catastrophe of modern times?
The horror in Syria is not simply the result of the regime's brutality, but also of monumental foreign policy misjudgements in Britain
Making the most of Geneva II
The Geneva II conference on Syria will finally convene in Switzerland next week. Prospects for an immediate or dramatic breakthrough are decidedly bleak, yet that should not be the bar against which the merits of convening Geneva II should be measured.
Syria’s uprising within an uprising
The Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS), a transnational ultraconservative Islamist group has been a thorn in the Syrian revolution since its inception in April 2013. The group is at the centre of a new round of infighting in rebel-held Syria.
Don’t pretend the U.N. can save Syria
It is time to set Lakhdar Brahimi free. After a year's service as envoy for the United Nations and Arab League to Syria, the veteran Algerian mediator faces the final breakdown of his efforts to end the war.