Le texte ci-dessous portant sur certains mots employés en parlant d’Israël et de la Palestine n’engage que moi. Chacun et chacune décide de son vocabulaire. Le principal est de savoir d’où on parle, pour qui et pour quoi… et sous quelle influence.
Marwan Qabalan, a researcher and professor of international politics, has stressed that state governance requires far more than managing a faction, group or institution, as it involves complex responsibilities tied to national interests and international representation. Speaking to Syria TV, Qabalan underscored the strategic importance of rebuilding Syria’s relationship with Russia, arguing that both countries share a mutual interest in strengthening bilateral ties.
The Lebanese group Hezbollah has firmly denied allegations made by the Syrian Ministry of Interior concerning the arrest of individuals in the western countryside of Damascus on 11 September.
In an official statement, Hezbollah’s media relations office rejected the ministry’s claims “in their entirety”, asserting that the group maintains neither a presence nor operations on Syrian territory. The statement reiterated Hezbollah’s commitment to the stability of Syria and the safety of its people.
Syria’s recent constitutional declaration, intended to unify a fractured nation, has instead deepened a crisis over the state’s identity, centring on divergent visions of political Islam. By designating Islamic jurisprudence as a principal source of legislation, the transitional authority in Damascus aimed to ground its legitimacy in a shared religious heritage. Yet the move has triggered a fierce contest over who holds the authority to interpret and represent Sharia within Syria’s evolving political framework, exposing stark divisions between former jihadist factions, the Muslim Brotherhood and an emerging, military-led religious narrative.
The dissolution of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in January 2025 proved more symbolic than substantive. Several of its prominent figures—including President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Justice Minister Mazhar al-Wais and religious affairs advisor Abdul Rahim Attoun—have since been absorbed into the state’s leadership. While they now present themselves as advocates of a state-sanctioned moderation, their past as jihadist ideologues continues to cast a long shadow, prompting scepticism over whether this marks genuine reform or merely a rebranding of entrenched power structures.
The Muslim Brotherhood, largely excluded from the transitional framework, has strongly objected to what it sees as the monopolisation of Sharia interpretation. For the Brotherhood, the issue is not the constitutional recognition of Islamic law but the strategic sidelining of their historic claim to its stewardship. The core dispute is not about religion per se, but about who controls its political application.
Further complicating the picture, the Syrian Ministry of Defence is quietly reshaping the military’s ideological doctrine. As reported by Al-Madina, new training curricula now incorporate Quranic studies, Islamic and modern Syrian history, and a concerted effort to counter extremist ideologies by branding them as modern-day “Khawarij”—a term historically used to label rebels. The adoption of Shafi’i jurisprudence as the official doctrinal reference signals a clear departure from the Salafist rhetoric that underpinned many jihadist movements during the conflict. Spearheaded by former HTS figures such as al-Wais and Attoun, this initiative seeks to consolidate disparate factions under a unified, state-endorsed religious identity, reviving Ash’ari, Maturidi and Sufi traditions long demonised by radical groups.
Nonetheless, this top-down imposition of a singular religious identity has met resistance. The Muslim Brotherhood views the state’s embrace of Shafi’i jurisprudence as a strategic manoeuvre to marginalise their influence. Others question whether former jihadists can credibly champion a message of moderation. The military’s role as the testing ground for this ideological overhaul is especially significant. Strict internal regulations, mandatory ideological indoctrination for soldiers, and the exclusion of defected officers all point to a calculated effort to align the armed forces with the state’s theological vision. Reports of training missions sent to Saudi Arabia further suggest regional backing for this so-called “moderate” military identity—a notable shift from the Kingdom’s historic support for Salafist currents.
This ideological battle is not confined to Damascus. Regional dynamics are also at play, with powers such as Saudi Arabia lending legitimacy to Syria’s new direction. The Brotherhood’s exclusion reflects a wider regional realignment. While the constitutional declaration provides a surface-level framework of legitimacy, it has failed to resolve more profound questions about Syria’s identity. Each faction—be it the transitional state, former jihadists or the Brotherhood—sees its own reflection in the fractured mirror of the constitution, yet none can agree on a cohesive image.
The Syrian state’s attempt to forge a unified national identity through political Islam risks entrenching division rather than overcoming it. Without a decisive resolution on who defines Sharia and how it is to be applied in governance, legitimacy remains contested—caught between rival constitutional texts, religious interpretations and regional agendas. As Syria continues its search for unity, the question remains: can a nation fractured by war reassemble itself into a coherent whole, or will it remain a battlefield for competing claims to religious and political authority?
The International Organization for Human Rights and Refugee Affairs supposed secretary-general, Frederick Schulman, is a U.S. investor convicted of multimillion-dollar real estate fraud, al-Hal writes.
Aleppo’s war-weary residents were told in late August that relief was on the way: a $10 million memorandum of understanding signed with the “International Organization for Human Rights and Refugee Affairs” (IOHR) to rehabilitate roads and restore vital infrastructure. The announcement, made via the governorate’s official Facebook page and splashed across state media, was presented as a breakthrough in attracting international support for Syria’s reconstruction.
Reinstating compulsory army service is a calculated response to evolving security dynamics, suggesting Jordan is preparing for prolonged regional uncertainty
Jordan’s announcement earlier this month on the reinstatement of mandatory military conscription after a three-decade hiatus marked a significant shift in the kingdom’s defence posture amid escalating regional tensions.
In a dramatic escalation, Israel last week launched a targeted airstrike that killed Ahmed al-Rahawi, the prime minister of the de facto Houthi regime in Sanaa.
The 28 August attack marks the most senior Ansar Allah figure killed in US-Israeli military operations to date, signalling a significant shift in strategy. Alongside Rahawi, several other high-ranking Houthi officials were killed or wounded.
With negotiations between the Kurdish-dominated SDF and Damascus stalled, clashes and tribal calls for mobilisation raise the prospect of widening violence
Tensions are simmering in Syria’s northeast as negotiations between Damascus and the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) stall, with low-level clashes and tribal calls for mobilisation raising the prospect of more bloodshed in post-Assad Syria.
Annexing the West Bank is the culmination of a decades-long Israeli project: the steady dispossession, erasure, and replacement of Palestinians
Israel has crossed a line the world once swore must never be crossed, with maps being drawn up by Israel’s far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, to annex the West Bank and bring the occupied Palestinian territory under Israeli sovereignty.