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ABBY SEWELL

US and Iraqi troops pass a poster of Muqtada al-Sadr, evidence of continued support for the anti-American cleric and his Mahdi Army militia, in Basra, Iraq, on June 10, 2008. (AP Photo/Kim Gamel)
August 12, 2026, 10:12 pm
Officials say US forces on track to complete Iraq pullout by September 30
Washington, Baghdad agreed in 2024 to wind down US-led operations against the Islamic State; Iraq also calls on Iran-backed militias to disarm, though they’re unlikely to do so
By Qassim Abdul-Zahra and ABBY SEWELL
The border between Syria and the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights town of Majdal Shams is seen July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
July 29, 2026, 11:24 am
Fringe settler group has been sneaking into Syria in bid to claim land for Jewish outpost
‘Bashan Pioneers’ regularly cross border in violation of the law; leaders tout support from right-wing ministers, say area must be ‘cleared of enemies’
By Natalie Melzer, ABBY SEWELL and Julia Frankel
A trailer carrying the coffins containing the bodies of Hezbollah's former leader Hassan Nasrallah and his cousin and successor Hashem Safieddine drives through the crowd as it enters the Sports City Stadium during a funeral procession in Beirut, February 23, 2025. (Hassan Ammar/AP)
June 10, 2026, 4:44 pm
Alleged spy’s mysterious vanishing spotlights Israel’s intelligence grip in Lebanon
Khaled al-Aydi, said to be a Palestinian refugee from Syria with Ukrainian citizenship, was held by Hezbollah, then escaped and disappeared, apparently via Ukrainian embassy
By ABBY SEWELL and Sally Abou Aljoud
Exposing themselves to the danger of unexploded ordnance, shepherd boys inspect an unexploded Iranian projectile that landed in an open field on the outskirts of Qamishli, eastern Syria, March 4, 2026. (AP/Baderkhan Ahmad)
May 1, 2026, 12:56 pm
Once plagued by civil war, Syria now sells itself as a safe corridor amid Iran conflict
Damascus offers Baniyas port as an alternative to Hormuz oil route, as official says there’s no interest in allying with either one of its ‘strategic enemies,’ Iran and Israel
By ABBY SEWELL
Hezbollah supporters shout slogans as they gather to mourn the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, March 1, 2026. (Hassan Ammar/AP)
March 2, 2026, 9:35 am
Repeated blows to Iranian power and its proxies set the stage for US-Israeli attacks
As Gaza war spread, Iran-backed groups failed to realize that Israel was changing the status quo, experts say; now they seem wary of helping their sponsor
By ADAM GELLER and ABBY SEWELL
Syrian government troops are seen at an abandoned checkpoint between government-controlled Raqqa and Hassakeh, controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), in northeastern Syria, January 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
January 20, 2026, 8:26 pm
Syrian military, Kurdish-led forces announce new truce after collapse of first deal
New four-day ceasefire comes after Syrian military accused SDF guards of abandoning a camp housing thousands of families with ties to ISIS, allowing detainees to escape
By GHAITH ALSAYED and ABBY SEWELL
A boy checks out military equipment as visitors tour the 'Syrian Revolution Military Exhibition,' which opened last week ahead of the first anniversary of the ousting of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Damascus, Syria, on December 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
December 8, 2025, 12:26 pm
Syria still struggles to heal from civil war, one year after Assad regime’s fall
As Syrians celebrate anniversary of authoritarian’s ouster, rebuilding efforts are still mostly small-scale, work opportunities low-paying, and the security situation precarious
By GHAITH ALSAYED and ABBY SEWELL
Illustrative: A car drives by a destroyed statue in the Druze-majority town of Sweida, Syria, July 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
November 14, 2025, 2:34 pm
Druze and Syrian government forces accuse each other of violating Sweida ceasefire
Renewed violence subsides, with reports of wounded on both sides but no casualties; Air Force said to have flown overhead as clashes erupted Thursday
By ABDULRAHMAN SHAHEEN and ABBY SEWELL
Syrian electoral college members line up to cast their ballots in a parliamentary election at a polling station in Damascus, on October 5, 2025. (AP/Omar Sanadiki)
October 5, 2025, 11:46 am
What to expect as Syria goes to the polls for the first time since Assad’s ouster
Sunday’s election, which does not include popular vote, criticized as undemocratic; vote not taking place in Druze-majority Sweida or Kurdish areas
By ABBY SEWELL
Young Kurdish men line up to sign up to join Syrian government's General Security forces at a police station in Afrin, Syria, an area in the country's north from which Kurds were forcibly displaced years ago, Aug. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
August 23, 2025, 12:53 pm
Syria security forces’ push to recruit Kurds, religious minorities brings hope, skepticism
Initiative comes after UN-backed commission that investigated sectarian violence recommended authorities increase diversity in security forces to gain trust of communities
By OMAR ALBAM and ABBY SEWELL
US President Donald Trump, right, shakes hands with Syrian President, Ahmed al-Sharaa, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 14, 2025. (Bandar AL-JALOUD / Saudi Royal Palace / AFP)
May 24, 2025, 6:39 am
After Trump announcement, Treasury Department says US formally lifting Syria sanctions
Sweeping economic relief doesn’t include removal of Sharaa’s HTS from terror blacklist; some US officials pushed for phased approach that would include normalizing ties with Israel
By ABBY SEWELL and Ellen Knickmeyer
In this photo provided by the Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets, members of the Syrian White Helmets collect the bodies of people found dead following a recent wave of violence between Syrian security forces and gunmen loyal to former president Bashar al-Assad, as well as subsequent sectarian attacks, in the coastal city of Baniyas, Syria, March 9, 2025. (Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets via AP)
March 13, 2025, 11:55 am
Syria shows signs of peril and promise in a week of violence and diplomacy
Though the new regime in Damascus seems to have quelled sectarian violence and secured a deal to merge Kurdish forces into the army, analysts say the leadership has a long way to go
By ABBY SEWELL
Children on the top of an ousted Syrian government forces tank that was left on a street in an Alawite neighborhood, in Homs, Syria, December 26, 2024. (AP Photo/ Leo Correa)
December 27, 2024, 1:44 pm
Syria’s Homs settles into uneasy calm after brief eruption of sectarian violence
Security forces flood major mixed city, patrolling and checking IDs, days after gunfire at protest by members of Alawite minority; Christians say new regime protecting churches
By ABBY SEWELL
Russian army armored vehicles drive near the Hmeimim Air Base, a Syrian airbase currently operated by Russia, located southeast of the city of Latakia in the town of Hmeimim, Syria, December 16, 2024. (AP/Leo Correa)
December 16, 2024, 11:52 pm
Russia still has a military presence in post-Assad Syria — for now
After years of backing now-toppled regime, Moscow is pulling back from some areas of Syria, but still has troops at primary base in Latakia, saying it is in talks with new leaders
By ABBY SEWELL
Yazidi men sit together during sunset in the Sharya displacement camp in the Duhok area of the Kurdistan region of Iraq, June 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Julia Zimmermann)
July 29, 2024, 12:54 pm
10 years on, many Yazidis uprooted by ISIS onslaught still struggle to find stability
Members of devastated community are trickling back home to Sinjar district after a decade of displacement, but despite their homeland’s deep significance, many see no future there
By ABBY SEWELL and Qassim Abdul-Zahra
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