By Fabrice Balanche|2026-01-20T16:27:40+01:0020 January 2026|Analysis, Kurdistan, Syria|
The Syrian city of Hassaka, home to a population of approximately 500,000, is poised to come under the authority of the Syrian regime. Kurdish forces will not be able to defend it, since most of [...]
By Fabrice Balanche|2026-01-18T07:55:47+01:0018 January 2026|Analysis, Kurdistan, Syria|
By Fabrice Balanche, published in Conflits, 17 January 2026. Important update This article was published on Saturday, January 17. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) had reached an agreement with the Syrian army thanks to American [...]
By Fabrice Balanche|2025-12-07T21:24:45+01:007 December 2025|Analysis, Kurdistan, Syria|
On the 10th of March 2025, Kurdish leader Mazloum Abdi and interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa met to sign an agreement incorporating the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) into the nation’s revamped military. The long-term plan was [...]
By Fabrice Balanche|2025-11-09T18:04:59+01:009 November 2025|Analysis, Middle-East, Syria|
Despite a superficial semblance of restored order, Syria under Ahmad al-Sharaa’s leadership remains a precarious state, grappling with internal strife, foreign meddling, and Israeli pressure. Amidst the allure of renewed investment and political manoeuvring, the [...]
By Fabrice Balanche|2025-07-18T12:48:03+02:0018 July 2025|Analysis, Maps, Syria|
On July 16, 2025, the Syrian army left the city of Sweida, as well as every other piece of land it controlled within that region, having held them for just two days. This was due [...]
By Fabrice Balanche|2025-06-11T23:16:07+02:0011 June 2025|Analysis, Middle-East, Publication|
Despite the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, it is easy to overlook the impact of climate change. The regional conflicts are largely determined by classical geopolitics. However, it is important not to overlook the [...]
By Fabrice Balanche|2025-03-25T08:20:05+01:0025 March 2025|Analysis, Publication, Syria|
The early-March 2025 massacres against the Alawites caused the deaths of thousands of people. Analyzing these events helps to understand the motivations of their perpetrators and the sequence of operations. Published in French in Revue [...]
By Fabrice Balanche|2025-03-03T15:15:20+01:003 March 2025|Analysis, Maps, Syria|
The original article is published by The Washington Institute by Fabrice Balanche, Feb 28, 2025 If Sharaa wants to avoid repeating Assad’s mistakes, he may have to genuinely decentralize political power and establish a federal system, [...]
By Fabrice Balanche|2024-12-07T17:36:48+01:007 December 2024|Analysis, Maps, Syria|
The city of Homs is resisting the assault of the jihadists who are blocked by the defense line established on the northern ring road. To break it, they could use suicide bombers like in Aleppo. [...]
By Fabrice Balanche|2024-11-13T23:15:54+01:0013 November 2024|Analysis, Media, Middle-East|
DeFacto, November 13, 2024 On the global stage, Donald Trump’s key objective remains ensuring the United States retains its status as the preeminent world power in the 21st century. At the core of this vision [...]
