Liz Sly

Also worth noting that Trump’s 60-day deadline for Iran to reach a nuclear deal expired on Wednesday. If there’s no deal by then, “there will be bombing” Trump said back in April. He didn’t say it would be US bombing.

U.S. shrinks presence in Middle East amid fears of Israeli strike on Iran U.S. embassies and military bases across the Middle East are on high alert, as fears grow about an Israeli strike on Iran.

The US has authorized the departure of dependents & non-essential personnel from embassies and bases within striking distance of Iran amid fears that Israel will soon attack Iran. “We think it’s more serious than any time in the past” a diplomat told the Post www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

US to evacuate personnel from Iraq following Iran threats A State Department official said the US “will reduce the footprint of [its] mission in Iraq” to ensure the safety of American personnel.

UPDATE:
• US evacuating personnel in Iraq
• Pentagon authorizing departure of military dependents ACROSS Middle East
• < 24hrs after Iran threat to hit US bases
• Trump losing confidence in deal
• Israel-Yemen escalation
• Talks in Oman Sunday www.al-monitor.com/originals/20...

The rise, fall and contested future of Hizbullah Lebanon has spent years under the militant group’s dominance. Could it be coming to an end?

One-stop-shop article by @lizsly.bsky.social on #Lebanon and #Hezbollah very much worth reading. ⬇️
via @economist.com.
www.economist.com/1843/2025/05...

The rise, fall and contested future of Hizbullah Lebanon has spent years under the militant group’s dominance. Could it be coming to an end?

Great article by @lizsly.bsky.social covering the rise, fall and transformation of Hizbullah
www.economist.com/1843/2025/05...

The rise, fall and contested future of Hizbullah Lebanon has spent years under the militant group’s dominance. Could it be coming to an end?

My long read on the rise, fall & contested future of Hezbollah, and what it all means for Lebanon. With huge thanks to @abbiefs.bsky.social
www.economist.com/1843/2025/05...

Mail complaining in poor English about immigrants with poor English

The Daily Mail complaining that immigrants have not the English too well.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...

If you want something absolutely horrifying to read on a Sunday morning, this is it. I think crypto is a scam, but when criminal gangs get involved and target family members it should be alarming for everyone.

The rise, fall and contested future of Hizbullah Lebanon has spent years under the militant group’s dominance. Could it be coming to an end?

"Hizbullah gaslit us!" Supporters are cursing it, opponents sense an opportunity. @lizsly.bsky.social profiles the most successful militia in the world as it hits an existential crossroad www.economist.com/1843/2025/05...

Syrians rejoice after Trump pledge to lift crippling sanctions For more than a decade, U.S. restrictions have barred nearly all trade with Syria. Now, Syrians are daring to hope for better lives.

Incredible scenes in Syria as people celebrate the surprise lifting of US sanctions, the chief impediment to recovery after the fall of Assad. “There were fireworks over Damascus, and people danced in the streets.” Over to the Syrians. By @leloveluck www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

Syrians unearth horrors of the Assad years in their basements Syrians had remained silent about the bodies dumped in countless basements by Assad’s forces. Rescue teams now are moving from home to home excavating remains.

Three months after Assad’s fall Syrians are still unearthing new horrors. The latest: bodies in the basements of buildings in towns reconquered by the regime. Chilling reporting by @leloveluck & Zakaria Zakaria with amazing photos by @salwangeorges www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

Mother of journalist Austin Tice visits Syria for clues to son’s fate Debra Tice’s visit to Syria was the latest leg in her long quest to learn the fate of her son Austin.

Debra Tice says Trump’s team has already reached out to offer help to find her son Austin, missing in Syria since 2012. “I haven’t experienced that for the last four years” she told journalists in Damascus, a dig at Biden. By @leloveluck www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

Debra Tice, mother of missing U.S. journalist Austin Tice, has arrived in Beirut en route to Syria to join in the search for him. Let’s hope that he will soon be found now that Assad has gone

Danish officials are being warned by Trump advisers & allies that he is “much more serious” about acquiring Greenland than he was in his first term. This time, the threat can’t be dismissed https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/08/politics/danish-officials-trump-greenland/index.html

Turkey-backed Syria may be bigger threat than Iran, says Israeli government panel Government committee warns a direct clash between Turkey and Israel may be possible in Syria in the future

Israel says it needs to prepare for a potential war with Turkey & sees the new Sunni government in Syria as potentially a “greater threat” than Iran. Israel needs a policy of “eliminating threats entirely and maximising response”. Setting up the region for endless wars

Reflections from Syria. Very briefly, for now. Lots more to come in the days/weeks ahead.

Three things are happening at once:
1/ The joy, relief, and miracle of it all.
2/ The huge grief and horror. 
3/ The uncertainty, complexity, and huge work ahead.

It's been two weeks since the Assad regime fell, and in Syria, the scale and pace of the change has been dizzying. Here's a thread of some of our @washingtonpost.com coverage: 🧵

Foreign powers jockey for control in Syria, risking new conflict In the days since the collapse of the Assad regime, multiple countries have bombed targets in Syria, as the power vacuum unleashes a battle for the heart of the Middle East.

@lizsly.bsky.social on the dangers of growing outsider posturing to have a say in Syria's future wapo.st/4ffuszH

Mazen al-Hamada, symbol of Syrian regime’s brutality, confirmed dead His body was found with about 40 others wrapped in bloody sheets and dumped at a military hospital outside Damascus.

"That he had survived all this time under the terrible conditions only to be killed at the very end is one of the hardest things for his friends to bear... [But] he died a hero"
Sarah Afshar on death of Syrian activist Mazen al-Hamada.

By @lizsly.bsky.social:
www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/1...

Mazen al-Hamada, symbol of Syrian regime’s brutality, confirmed dead His body was found with about 40 others wrapped in bloody sheets and dumped at a military hospital outside Damascus.

The joy felt by millions of Syrians at Assad’s departure has been tempered by the realization that most of the estimated 100,000 people who went missing in the gulag of his prison system will probably never return. — @lizsly.bsky.social www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/1...

Mazen al-Hamada, symbol of Syrian regime’s brutality, confirmed dead His body was found with about 40 others wrapped in bloody sheets and dumped at a military hospital outside Damascus.

Mazen al-Hamada told the world about the horrors of
Assad’s prisons & the torture he suffered. No one listened & now he is dead, under torture in the last hours of Assad’s regime www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/1...

I assume lots of reporters will be in Syria soon. There will be lots of interest in stories about people released from Assad's torture houses. Hacks: Please consider the extreme trauma such people have gone through. Talk to trauma specialists before you go. Don't add to trauma to fill your quota.

Assad’s fall was swift and unexpected. But the signs were always there. Assad missed multiple opportunities to reconcile with his opponents and the international community, and failed to address his country’s economic suffering.

Assad’s fall was swift & unexpected, stunning a world that had come to accept his survival. But with hindsight it wasn’t so surprising. He miscalculated, refused to compromise and relied solely on brute force to survive (plus Russia & Iran) www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/1...

There’s only one way to wrap up today’s momentous events:
-The rebels have reached Damascus
-Government soldiers are abandoning their posts
-The Assad regime is effectively gone, it can only be a matter of hours
-A new Syria is being born, for better or worse

Iran Begins to Evacuate Military Officials and Personnel From Syria The withdrawals by one of President Bashar al-Assad’s key backers comes amid a resurgent rebel offensive.

Iran has begun evacuating its military personnel from Syria. “We cannot fight as an advisory and support force if Syria’s army itself does not want to fight.” Even Assad’s staunchest ally is giving up on him www.nytimes.com/2024/12/06/w...

Syrian rebels enter Hama as army announces departure from key city Syrian rebels ousted pro-government forces from Hama on Thursday, bringing the insurgents a major new victory after a lightning advance across northern Syria and dealing a new blow to President Bashar al-Assad and his Russian and Iranian allies.

The Syrian rebels have taken Hama. The Syrian army announced its withdrawal. This is momentous. The next city is Homs. After that, Damascus.

www.reuters.com/world/middle...

This map shows recent developments in north-west Syria.

Syrian rebels regrouped, seized on weakness of government’s key allies The rebels have made stunning gains against President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, with Russia, Iran and Hezbollah distracted by other conflicts.

Syria’s rebels reorganized, rearmed & seized the moment of maximum weakness among Syria’s allies. Iran is “the weakest it’s been in decades.” Hezbollah too. Russia is preoccupied in Ukraine. By @leloveluck @kfahim & @sgreports www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/1...

Events are moving fast in Syria:
-The rebels have reached Hama, a day after taking Aleppo
-Protests & attacks reported around Syria
-Rumors of gunfights in Damascus
-Assad surfaces to call Iraq’s PM. Asking for militia help?
-Russia has fired the top general in Syria
-Iran’s FM due in Damascus Sun

And Russia too, of course. But Russia is still there….