As Assad’s Dictatorship in Syria Ends, New Risks for the Middle East Are Huge

The overthrow of the Assad government could mean Russia’s bases in Syria are closed and Iran’s pathway to Hezbollah is cut off. Now Iran, newly vulnerable, will have to decide between negotiation and the bomb.

News
Monday Briefing: Al-Assad Flees Syria as Rebels Claim Power

Plus, Notre-Dame reopens.

News
Israeli Ground Forces Cross into Syria, Officials Say

Israeli ground forces have overtly crossed into Syrian territory for the first time since the 1973 October War, passing the demilitarized border zone, two Israeli officials said.

News
Notre-Dame Holds First Public Mass in Years: ‘Fire Has Not Conquered Stone’

Sunday was the first opportunity for worshipers to return to the cathedral, beloved by the faithful and secular alike, since the 2019 fire that devastated it. “Despair has not conquered life,” its rector said.

News
Trump Suggests RFK Jr. Will Examine Debunked Link Between Vaccines and Autism

The president-elect has promoted the theory for more than a decade and said on Sunday that he was “open to anything” to address a nationwide rise in autism.

News
Biden Says U.S. Conducted Airstrikes Against Islamic State Targets in Syria

President Biden hailed the fall of President Bashar al-Assad as a “fundamental act of justice” but warned of “a moment of risk and uncertainty.”

News
Israel Enters Golan Heights Buffer Zone After Syria’s Assad Falls

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said he had ordered troops to “take over” the zone between his country and Syria.

News
Bogged Down in Ukraine, Russia Pays a Price in Syria

With the fall of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, Vladimir V. Putin has suffered one of the biggest geopolitical setbacks of his quarter-century in power.

News
What’s Next for Syria After the Collapse of Assad’s Government?

Predicting Syria’s future is challenging, as the government’s sudden demise took many people who have watched the region for years by surprise.

News
Syrians in Lebanon Start to Head Home, With Both Joy and Worry

Thousands who fled during the country’s civil war celebrated the toppling of the Assad government — and their long-awaited return home — at the Syria-Lebanon border crossing.

News