Damascus

The KRG has helped smooth the transition in eastern Syria by working with Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces, also hosting US forces and other anti-ISIS coalition forces.

Israel must now prepare for a reality where its northern border is contested by a regime that seeks to prove its Islamist credentials by succeeding where Assad failed.

Syrian officials described the move as the largest influx of investment since the US sanctions were lifted.

BEHIND THE LINES: The arrival of Syrian forces to Qamishli sets the seal on the effective demise of the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES).

This could be a major game-changer for Syria as it begins to regrow its economy after decades of sanctions and isolation.

The new agreement, described as a “qualitative shift,” differs in both form and substance from previous understandings reached in recent years.

In the rare interview, al-Shatri said Iraqi intelligence estimates suggest that ISIS’s presence in Syria has grown from roughly 2,000 fighters a year ago to as many as 10,000 terrorists today.

A resident of Kobane said, “We are in a dire condition. We are melting snow through fire, but we do not have [enough] fire to melt the snow with."

An extension of the ceasefire would be in the interest of most groups involved.

Turkey deployed an advanced radar system at Damascus International Airport, a move Western sources warn could restrict Israel’s freedom of action in Syrian airspace and heighten regional tensions.