Al-Sharaa

Syria’s New State Looks Alarmingly Rural

Post-Assad Syria is not settling into a new national centre. It is hardening into a patchwork of rural power bases, clan ties, and competing local loyalties.

Lebanon Ceasefire: New Deal Ploughs the Same Furrow

Trump brokers a truce in Lebanon, leaving a ten-day window to test the old structural deadlock that has defined the Blue Line for generations.

Abu Dhabi Recalibrates Relations with Syria’s New Leadership

UAE backs Syria’s new leadership with reconstruction aid as al-Sharaa visits Abu Dhabi, signaling shifting Gulf dynamics post-Assad.

All Roads Lead to Mecca: Syria’s New Patron

Syria’s new interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, visited Mecca after arriving in Riyadh yesterday in a trip that indicates the future order of regional power in Syria.

Al-Sharaa Seeks Support in Meeting with Christian Clerics

Syria's new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, met with Christian clerics in Damascus to reassure the country's dwindling Christian community, amid growing concerns over religious tolerance and the influence of radical militias following his rise to power.

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Sudan Trades Iranian Drones For American Goodwill

As Khartoum discreetly curbs Iranian arms purchases and welcomes EU envoys for the first time since the war began, its army gambles on Washington's favour.

Is Paris Serious About Corsica’s Autonomy?

France's parliament has passed a Corsican autonomy bill, but its deliberate legal vagueness and the supermajority gauntlet ahead keep real devolution in limbo.

Qatar Holds the Iran File Together at G7

Trump's bilateral with Qatar's emir at the G7 in France shows Doha has become indispensable to Washington's Iran diplomacy, and both sides know it.

Trump’s Peace Push Serves the 2028 Republican Succession

A ceasefire that finally frees the Strait of Hormuz also frees Donald Trump to spend his last months in office building a 2028 inheritance for his chosen heir.

Burnham Builds Politics Through Manchester Music

Andy Burnham has turned Manchester music into a political identity that sets him apart from Westminster Labour.