With growing risks threatening traditional maritime corridors, Syria’s geography could give it a renewed role in linking the Gulf with Turkiye and Europe through a network of highways and railway lines.

With the fall of Bashar al Assad’s regime in December 2024, unsecured weapons depots emerged as a major threat to civilian life, even as the new authorities seek to establish security and political stability in the country.

As displaced Syrians make their way back to devastated towns, a deadly pattern is emerging—children and women are killed almost daily by landmines and unexploded ordnance left behind by war.

The U.S. sanctions, which are the most comprehensive against Syria, remain the biggest obstacle to seeing a recovery in the transitional period and improving the livelihoods of Syrians.

Numerous obstacles are preventing many Syrian refugees from returning to their homes and towns after the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime, with the destruction of homes or their illegal seizure topping the list.