Information about the Syrian Revolution
The democratic revolution in Syria is intimately linked with Ukraine’s struggle against the Russian invasion. Now, more than a year after the hated regime of Bashar Al-Assad was overthrown, it is time to update the revolution’s progress and problems.
The successful overthrow of Assad was due in part to the fact that Ukrainian resistance to Russia’s invasion had destroyed so much of Russia’s military capacity, and tied down so much more of that capacity, that Putin and his regime were unable to intervene to try to save its client Bashar al Assad from the popular uprising.
In turn, the overthrow of Assad threw Russia’s military and economic power in Western Asia, the Mediterranean Sea and Africa into chaos and resulted in the closure of Russia’s one naval base in the Mediterranean.
The events also exposed the false claims of Putinist, Assadist, and campist propaganda that portrayed the Assad regime as democratic and anti-imperialist.
Since the overthrow of Assad, the Syrian transitional government was formed under the leadership of President Ahmed al-Sharaa. It has sought to establish its control over the entire territory of Syria through deals with the United States, Russia, Turkey, and Israel which all still maintain military presences in Syria. Israel continues to occupy a large swath of southern Syria.
In the process of its efforts, the Israel has bombed Syria, and the transitional government has had armed conflicts with two large national minority groups: the Druse in southwestern Syria and the Kurds in northeastern Syria.
In the case of the Druse, Israel largely now controls their territory and the alliance between Druse leaders and Israel has been strengthened. In the case of the Kurds, the Kurdish led Syrian Democratic Forces have signed an agreement with he transitional government to reduce Kurdish autonomy and partially integrate into the new Syrian state.
Where will the Syrian democratic revolution go from here? Part of the answer will depend on internal developments, but another part is likely to be shaped by events the intermittent revolutionary upheavals in next door Iran combined with the threat of war by the United States and Israel against that country.
Below we provide you with new and up-to-date resources to help you understand this complex process of war and revolution.
One year since the Syrian rebel offensive that toppled Assad: What is the situation today?
By Michael Karadjis, December 9, 2026
Rojava, Kurdish autonomy & self-determination, and the hard problem of simple demographics: An essay of maps
By Michael Karadjis, February 12, 2026
The revolution in North and East Syria after the fall of Assad
By Chris Slee, January 29, 2025
https://links.org.au/revolution-north-and-east-syria-after-fall-assad
Ceasefire in Syria: a challenging outlook
By Ellen Clarke and Emile Hokayem, February 18, 2026
No exit in sight: Why Turkey is keeping troops in Syria and Iraq
Despite the SDF’s integration deal and peace talks with the PKK, Turkey appears set to maintain a long-term military presence in Syria and Iraq
By Paul Iddon, February 16, 2026
https://www.newarab.com/analysis/no-exit-sight-why-turkey-keeping-troops-syria-and-iraq
US to withdraw troops from Syria as tensions mount with Iran
By Brandon Drenon, February 18, 2026
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c875pey8vy2o
Russia in discussions with Syria about maintaining its military presence: Lavrov
Russian foreign minister argues that Syrians ‘keen’ for Russia’s presence to endure
By Elena Teslova, February 19, 2026
Kurdish-led SDF agrees integration with Syrian government forces
The agreement comes after the SDF lost swaths of territory to the government forces during weeks of fighting.
By Aljazeera, January 30l, 2026
Syria’s strategic turn: reclaiming territory, rebuilding state authority
By Hani Hazaimeh, February 17, 2026
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2633357/amp
The Spirit of Resistance of Kobanê Must Rise!
By Kurdistan Communities Union, January 18, 2026
https://kck-info.com/statements180126/
Rojava under attack: A timeline of treachery
By Sarah Glynn, Green Left, January 20, 2026
https://www.greenleft.org.au/2026/1446/world/rojava-under-attack-timeline-treachery
‘Total War For Survival’: Syria’s SDF Prepares for Showdown With Damascus
Alexis Daloumis, Drop Site News, January 20, 2026
Should Kurdish freedoms be sacrificed for Syria’s centralisation?
Joseph Daher, The New Arab, January 21, 2026
https://www.newarab.com/opinion/should-kurdish-freedom-be-sacrificed-syrias-centralisation
Surrounded and Abandoned, Rojava Faces Slaughter
Matt Broomfield, Truthdig, January 22, 2026
https://www.truthdig.com/articles/surrounded-and-abandoned-rojava-faces-slaughter/
The revolutionary women of Rojava are in grave danger
Natasha Walter, The Guardian, Jan. 22, 2026
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jan/22/revolutionary-women-rojava-grave-danger-syria
Syrian Government Gains Ground in Northeast Syria After Arab Tribes Defect Against Kurdish SDF
C.P. Ward, Drop Site News, January 22, 2026
https://www.dropsitenews.com/p/syria-northeast-government-sdf-kurds-arab-tribes-ceasefire
How the West left its allies abandoned in the blood-soaked sands of Syria
Matthew Broomfield, The Telegraph, January 23, 2026
https://archive.fo/LgnLR#selection-3029.4-3029.77
Rojava’s Experiment in Revolutionary Autonomy Is Facing Its Greatest Threat Yet
Shane Burley, Truthout, February 11, 2026
December 2024-January 2025 Reports:
Michael Karadjis’ blog, Their Anti-imperialism and Ours, provides seriously researched in-depth analysis about the Syrian revolution, the Palestinian struggle and other world events.
https://theirantiimperialismandours.com/
The Syrian revolution, Iran and Israel: Squaring the circle, refuting myths
January 14, 2025
A compendium of valuable resources compiled by Ramah Kudaimi
https://padlet.com/rkudaimi/syria-revolution-beyond-a61mfuq1v72ejcri
The Syrian Revolution: A Reader
“To understand history we must position ourselves within it. To remember those who fell in the struggle for a better tomorrow is about the individual but also so much more. Perhaps as Omar would have put it; it’s about humans.
“These are texts by Syrian revolutionaries, activists, intellectuals, anarchists, as well as interviews with such. Initially compiled in 2022, it has been updated and comes with renewed relevance due to the Assad regime being toppled end of last year.
“120 pages, where the next chapter is still unwritten.”
Scroll down from the homage to Omar Aziz to download the Reader
A Joint Statement on the victory of the Syrian people signed by the International Workers League [International Secretariat] – Fourth International (LIT-CI, www.litci.org), International Unity of Workers – Fourth International (UIT-CI, www.uit-ci.org) and the Revolutionary Communist International Tendency (RCIT, www.thecommunists.net)
Syria, geopolitics and the left by Santiago Alba Rico. Geopolitics has become the new “last refuge” of scoundrels.
English
https://links.org.au/syria-geopolitics-and-left
Spanish
https://www.publico.es/opinion/columnas/siria-geopolitica-izquierda.html
Understanding the rebellion in Syria
This Tempest interview with Swiss Syrian socialist Joseph Daher is about the process that led to the fall of Assad’s rule, the prospects for progressive forces, and the challenges they face in fighting for a truly liberated country that serves the interests of all its peoples and popular
https://tempestmag.org/2024/12/understanding-the-rebellion-in-syria/
The Kurdish struggle is central to Syria’s future
Joseph Daher argues that progressives must build a pluralistic Syria that recognizes the freedoms of Kurds.
https://www.newarab.com/opinion/kurdish-struggle-central-syrias-future
The Threats ahead of a Democratic and Progressive Syria
In this article, Joseph Daher says that Syrian popular classes must organize to achieve the initial aspirations of the Syrian revolution. He analyzes the threat posed by the remnants of the old regime and then analyzes HTS’s policy to consolidate its power over the new Syria.
Syria: What Comes After the Despot?
An interview with Anand Gopal on why the Assad dictatorship was one of the most brutal regimes of the 21st century and what’s likely to come next in Syria.
https://jacobin.com/2024/12/syrian-revolution-assad-hts-democracy
The Collapse of the Assad Regime: An Interview on Syria with Gilbert Achcar
Stephen R. Shalom interviewed Gilbert Achcar on December 9 2024. Achcar is just retiring as professor of Development Studies and International Relations at SOAS, University of London. His many books include Perilous Power: The Middle East and US Foreign Policy, co-authored with Noam Chomsky (2007); The Arabs and the Holocaust: The Arab-Israeli War of Narratives (2010); Marxism, Orientalism, Cosmopolitanism (2013); The People Want: A Radical Exploration of the Arab Uprising (2013, 2022); and Morbid Symptoms: Relapse in the Arab Uprising (2016). His new book on Gaza will be coming out from the University of California Press in the summer.
https://newpol.org/the-collapse-of-the-assad-regime-an-interview-on-syria-with-gilbert-achcar/
As Assad Regime Falls, Syrians Celebrate — and Brace for an Uncertain Future
By Shireen Akram-Boshar , Truthout December 11, 2024
Decolonising Syria: the tankie meltdown explained. Why the pro-Putin left is in mourning over Assad
Paul Mason explains why the pro-Putin left is in mourning over Assad.
https://paulmasonnews.medium.com/decolonising-syria-the-tankie-meltdown-explained-b88d681f32ad
A New Dawn for Syria: The Fall of the Assad Regime
Abdusalam Dallal says that there is no doubt that Syrians are divided and cautiously optimistic. In this transitional period, the big fear is that a ‘revolutionary’ elite associated with the new administration will take over from the regime’s elite, leaving those whose struggles fuelled the revolution, including the working class, without real representation.
https://menasolidaritynetwork.com/2025/01/04/a-new-dawn-for-syria-the-fall-of-the-assad-regime/
YouTube and other online videos
After the Fall of Assad: The Struggle for a Free Syria, a Haymarket Books presentation with Joseph Daher, Leila Al-Shami, Shireen Akram-Boshar, and Yaser Munif
https://www.youtube.com/live/iuMrc4tj21g
After Fall of Assad, “Struggle from Below” Needed to Build a Free & Democratic Syria
A shorter interview of Daher by Democracy Now with a similar content to that of the Haymarket presentation.
https://www.democracynow.org/2024/12/12/syria_joseph_daher
What Syrians are saying in the first week after the fall of Assad.
Howie Hawkins talks to Nidal Bitari a Palestinian who grew up in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria and participated in the 2011 uprising against the Assad regime.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dClHWapZxeU&list=PLDTC9USV5d-EHNkpBdJH5WVi7xBBsvVxq&index=49
“Assad Is Gone”: Writer Yassin al-Haj Saleh on Syria, His 16 Years in Prison & Wife’s Disappearance
Amy Goodman of Democracy Now interviews Yassin al-Haj Saleh, a Syrian writer, dissident and former political prisoner who was jailed in Syria from 1980 to 1996.
https://www.democracynow.org/2024/12/9/syria_yassin_al_haj_saleh
The Collapse of the Syrian Regime
This Jadaliyya interview of Omar Dahi & Bassam Haddad examines the background and development of the Syrian revolution from the point of view of uniting the struggles against dictatorships and imperialism.
Rashid Khalidi on Assad’s opposition to Palestinian interests
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJsytMboJXg
Nidal Bitari: What Syrians are saying in the first week after the fall of Assad.
Nidal Bitari is a Palestinian who grew up in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria. He participated in the 2011 uprising against the Assad regime.
The Mainstream Media
Syria and Ukraine seek ‘strategic partnerships’ as senior officials meet
Its Syrian Bases in Doubt, Russia Sends Cargo Flights to Libya
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/19/world/middleeast/russia-flights-libya-syria.html
Humbled in Syria, Putin Seeks Vindication in Ukraine
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/12/world/europe/putin-syria-ukraine.html