Bashar Assad

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East Aleppo, Syria, was widely brought to ruin by years of war, and now with Russia and Turkey leading peace efforts, international officials say it's time to start rebuilding. (Associated Press)

ISIS fight could turn on military moves by Turkey and Syria

By Carlo Muñoz - The Washington Times

Syrian and Turkish forces have encircled the city of al-Bab, which the Islamic State terror army has been using as a way station to move weapons, soldiers and other crucial supplies into the group's home base in Raqqa. An assault on the group's stronghold may be imminent. (Reuters)

ISIS hold in Syria loosens after forces cut off supply lines around al-Bab

By Carlo Muñoz - The Washington Times

Syrian Kurdish militia members of the YPG make a V-sign next to a drawing of Abdullah Ocalan, jailed Kurdish rebel leader, in Esme village in Aleppo province, Syria, in this Feb. 22, 2015, file photo. (Mursel Coban/Depo Photos via AP, File)

Russia calls for ‘cultural autonomy’ for ethnic Kurds in postwar Syria

By Carlo Muñoz - The Washington Times

Syria lets Russia expand its Mediterranean naval facility

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV - Associated Press

Secretary of State John Kerry looks toward President Barack Obama during a bilateral meeting with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on the margins of 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2016. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Obama hoped to use ISIS as leverage against Assad, John Kerry reveals

By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times

FILE -- In this Feb. 24, 2016 file photo, a Syrian shopkeeper waits for customers next to paintings of of President Bashar Assad, and Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, center, at the Souk Tawil market in Damascus, Syria. Turkey said Thursday, Dec. 29, 2016, that Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group, which has sent thousands of fighters to support President Bashar Assad, should withdraw from Syria. In an interview with Turkey's A Haber news channel, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also said Turkey and Russia are close to reaching an agreement on a nationwide Syrian cease-fire that would come into effect by the end of the year. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File)

The Latest: Cease-fire takes effect in war-ravaged Syria

By The Associated Press - Associated Press

FILE - A Syrian army soldier places a Syrian national flag during a battle with rebel fighters at the Ramouseh front line, east of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Dec. 5, 2016. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File)

Syria cease-fire by Russia brings halt to fighting without U.S. participation

By Carlo Muñoz - The Washington Times

A civil defense worker carries a child after airstrikes hit Aleppo, Syria. (Associated Press)

Iran brutalizing Aleppo, executing ‘most atrocious war crimes’ of 21st century

By Rowan Scarborough - The Washington Times

This image posted online Sunday, Dec. 6, 2015, by supporters of the Islamic State militant group on an anonymous photo sharing website, shows smoke rising in the aftermath of an airstrike that targeted areas in Raqqa, Syria. The photo bears the watermark of Islamic State media releases and is consistent with other AP reporting. The Arabic caption on the photo reads, &quot;Russian warplanes target homes of Muslims in Raqqa.” (militant photo via AP) ** FILE **

The Latest: Turkey sends 300 more troops to Syria border

Associated Press

In this picture taken on Friday, Oct. 7, 2016, Syrian citizens attend a sit-in against the forced displacement in Syria, in front the United Nations headquarters, in downtown Beirut, Lebanon. Syrian opposition figures and refugees point to an array of obstacles facing the displaced who want to return home, saying that the government is machinating to discourage potentially restive populations from returning to areas they fled during the war. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Displaced Syrians fear return, marking a demographic shift

By PHILIP ISSA - Associated Press

Building a Confederation in Syria Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

Why confederation can work in Syria

By Michael O'Hanlon

Illustration on the international dangers of a Clinton presidency by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times

Hillary Clinton, the violent humanitarian

By Jed Babbin

FILE - In this Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016 photo released by the Syrian Presidency, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks to The Associated Press at the presidential palace in Damascus, Syria. Egypt's subtle support for Assad and close ties to Russia, for example, puts the most populous Arab nation at odds with the Saudis, who support anti-government Islamist rebel groups in Syria and sees no alternative to Assad's departure. (Syrian Presidency via AP, File)

Kremlin: demands for Assad’s departure “thoughtless”

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV and BASSEM MROUE - Associated Press

FILE - This Sept. 1, 2016 file photo provided by the Syria Press Center (SPC), an anti-government media group, shows rescue workers using a bulldozer to remove a burned van after airstrikes that killed a dozen people west of the town of Suran in Hama province, Syria. Infighting among some insurgent groups in Syria is severely hampering an offensive that many activists had hoped would cut government supply lines to Aleppo and ease the pressure on that embattled northern city. A Syrian cabinet minister, Ali Haidar, told The Associated Press in Damascus on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2016, that Hama was the “safety valve which the gunmen tried to open to alleviate pressure on Aleppo.” (Syria Press Center via AP, File)

Rebel advances in central Syria set back by infighting

By BASSEM MROUE - Associated Press

A technician examines the lighting grid as preparations continue for Monday's first debate presidential between Democratic Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump, Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016, at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y. (AP Photo/J. David Ake)

Candidates, preparing to inherit Syria mess, offer few plans

By MATTHEW LEE - Associated Press

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks during his annual news conference in Moscow, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016. Russia on Tuesday argued strongly against Turkey's demand to keep a leading Kurdish group out of Syria's peace talks, and said it expects the U.N. envoy to resist what he called &quot;blackmail&quot; by Turkey and others, reflecting sharp differences that remain ahead of the scheduled talks. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)

Syrian government press in their offensive on Aleppo

By BASSEM MROUE - Associated Press

Russian President Vladimir Putin listens during a meeting with VTB CEP Andrei Kostin in Moscow's Kremlin on Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2016. The meeting focused on the current operations of the state-controlled VTB, Russia's second-largest bank. (Alexei Nikolsky/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russia fighting in Syria for a year, still at odds with U.S.

By LOLITA C. BALDOR - Associated Press

Somalia's Foreign Minister Abdusalam Hadliyeh Omer addresses the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters, Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

The Latest: Somalia says al-Shabab is defeated militarily

Associated Press

In this Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016, photo released by the Syrian Presidency, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks to The Associated Press at the presidential palace in Damascus, Syria. Assad said U.S. airstrikes on Syrian troops in the country's east were definitely intentional, lasting for an hour, and blamed the U.S. for the collapse of a cease-fire deal brokered with Russia. (Syrian Presidency via AP)

Bashar Assad blames U.S. for Syria truce collapse: AP exclusive report

By Ian Phillips and Zeina Karam - Associated Press

Five years ago, President Obama first declared that it was "time for the Syrian people to determine their own destiny, and we will continue to stand firmly on their side." Officials argued there could be no lasting peace so long as President Bashar Assad remained in power. (Associated Press)

Obama’s push to oust Syria’s Bashar Assad proves uniquely futile

By Dave Boyer - The Washington Times