Month: August 2025

What Will Syria Do with Its Foreign Militants?

Unifying and deradicalizing Syria’s armed forces will be the regime’s most formidable challenge.

The United States has now lifted all sanctions on Syria, except on some individuals and entities associated with the former Assad regime. Additionally, the United States has revoked the foreign terrorist organization designation for Syria’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). This comes after Washington approved the Syrian leadership’s plan to incorporate thousands of foreign jihadists into the new Syrian army, dropping its longstanding demand that the new leadership deport or detain foreign fighters.

Unfolding the Rationale Behind Suicide Terrorism as a Weapon of Choice

Abstract: There is a plethora of studies on suicide terrorism from different aspects, but researchers have failed to identify suicide attacks as a weapon of choice. This reluctance may stem from the fact that suicide terrorism does not fall under the strict terminology of ‘weapon’. Suicide attacks have been used as a weapon to accomplish both hard and soft targets. To carry out a suicide attack, gender has not been a barrier. A suicide attack may not fall under the strict interpretation of a weapon. Still, it can be used as a weapon to accomplish a target, subject to the availability of the so-called resources of suicide bombers.

Don’t be deceived, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is a terror organization!

HTS is a radical terrorist organization that is directly responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of people in Syria in the past seven years. Although the organization liberated Syria from its brutal dictator Bashar al-Assad, we recommend that you never forget its origins and deeds along the way, which may suggest a new brutal dictatorship. Al-Julani and his designated ministers already stated that Syria will be a country of Sharia law. They even use the jihadist flag.

Mazloum Abdi Expresses Commitment to Decentralization and Concerns Over Syrian Government Integration – The Syrian Observer

On July 29, 2025, Mazloum Abdi, commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), reiterated his commitment to a decentralized governance model for northeastern Syria while expressing concerns about the integration of SDF institutions into the Syrian state. In an interview with Al-Arabiya, Abdi emphasized the importance of constitutional guarantees to address apprehensions among SDF components, particularly following recent sectarian violence. This article outlines Abdi’s stance on the March 10, 2025, agreement with the Syrian transitional government, the challenges to its implementation, and the broader implications for Syria’s unity and Kurdish rights.

“Mediterranean Airlines”: The Greek Airline Flying to Damascus with Links to Arms Dealers and Smugglers – The Syrian Observer

When Mediterranean Airlines became the first European carrier to resume flights to Damascus in 2025, it wasn’t just a business decision—it was a move shrouded in crime and political intrigue. This investigation reveals how the Greek airline partnered with wanted arms dealers, drug traffickers, and migrant smugglers, all while evading scrutiny from EU authorities. From FBI fugitives in Syria to a convicted smuggler in Libya, the trail of corruption stretches across borders—raising urgent questions about who enabled this shadowy operation.

Defence Industry: Turkey’s Cooperation with OTS Members

Executive Summary

The Organisation of Turkic States (OTS) launched a multilateral defence industry cooperation platform that represents Ankara’s strategic initiative to expand its economic and geopolitical influence in Central Asia and the South Caucasus.

Coinciding with the 17th International Defence Industry Fair (IDEF) in Istanbul, this development supports Turkey’s ambitions to merge a defence-industrial bloc rooted in Turkic cultural ties.

Follow the Money: Tracking Hidden Funds Behind Extremism in the Balkans

epa05614537 An Egyptian currency vendor counting US doilar and euro bank notes in Cairo, Egypt, 02 November 2016. Reports by state news agency MENA state Egypt’s Central Bank (CBE) held the local currency, the Egyptian pound stable against the US dollar at EGP 8.78 at the weekly auction 02 November. At the same time, Egyptian pound weakened considerably in the black market and fell from 18 to 13 pounds against one USA dollar. EPA/KHALED ELFIQI

Ethno-nationalism often fuels religious and far-right extremism by crafting a unifying narrative centered on identity, grievances and perceived victimhood.

These narratives are frequently rooted in historical conflicts and territorial disputes. In some cases, these stories escalate into violence.

A short history of HTS and important affiliated groups in Syria

Over a week between November and December 2024, Syria’s Assad regime disintegrated under pressure from a rebel offensive after 14 years of war. This offensive was led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a Salafi extremist group. Its leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, formerly known by his nom de guerre, Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, took the reins of the country and became Syria’s president on January 29, 2025.

The Anti-Anthropic Foundations Of The Islamic Republic – Analysis

Civilizational Decay, Entropy, and the Failure of Moral Evolution

ranThis paper examines the Islamic Republic of Iran not merely as a political system, but as a metaphysical and civilizational rupture. Contrary to narratives that view the regime as reformable, this paper argues that the Islamic Republic is rooted in an anti-anthropic paradigm — one that lacks a moral anthropology and operates outside the ethical architecture of civilization. Drawing from political philosophy, Islamic ethics, Iranian history, and entropy theory, the paper contends that the regime is a parasitic formation sustained by the historical disintegration of Iranian society and incapable of ethical evolution or civilizational integration.