2025/01/02 by Natasha Hall
Social Sciences · #Middle East Politics and Society #Global Peace and Security Dynamics #Post-Soviet Geopolitical Dynamics
paper · doi:10.1080/00396338.2025.2459015
On 27 November 2024, Syrian rebels led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham broke out of Syria’s isolated northwestern enclave, launching an offensive that felled the 54-year Assad dynasty in 11 days. While the rebels performed remarkably in overthrowing a brutal dictator, Bashar al-Assad, the dramatic disappearance of foreign backers sealed his fate. Their departure resulted in part from changes in the regional and international order, and his fall heralds a new era in the Middle East and beyond. In particular, Syria’s transition will affect and be affected by seven main stakeholders – Iran, Israel, the Gulf states, Turkiye, the Syrian Democratic Forces-led Kurds, Russia and the United States – each making distinct and potentially conflicting ideological, geopolitical and economic calculations.