A close examination of eight years of US policy in Syria shows Washington’s objective has never been regime change, but rather “a modified form of regime preservation,” writes Dr. Michael Karadjis in a comprehensive review of the record.

Since the outbreak of the Syrian uprising and the ensuing militarization and bombardment by the Bashar al-Assad regime, large numbers of Syrians have been forced to flee across their country’s borders into neighboring territories. Turkey in particular has been a preferred destination, due to its relative stability and position as a stepping stone to Europe via the Aegean Sea from its western shoreline, especially the…

Animals have not fared well at militants’ hands in Syria over the past seven years, though civilians have been kinder. Dr. Uğur Ümit Üngör traces the shifting role and symbolism of animals in Syria’s recent history.

Assad was never going to save Syria’s Kurds from the Turkish army. That the Kurds sought a devil’s bargain with him anyway was a mistake in more than one way, argues James Snell.

[Editor’s note: The below article was produced as part of Al-Jumhuriya’s 2017 Fellowship for Young Writers. It was originally published in Arabic on 1 February, 2018.] At the end of 2014, the self-proclaimed “Islamic State” (ISIS) managed to impose itself as a military force to be reckoned with on the ground, dominating a larger combined area of Syria and Iraq than any other party to…