Gaza strikes March 18.

Israel launches heaviest strikes against Hamas since ceasefire began,hundreds dead

The surprise attack shattered a period of relative calm during Ramadan and raised the prospect of a full return to fighting in the 17-month war.

  • Wafaa Shurafa andJosef Federman

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Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan,left,shakes hands with Ahmad al-Sharaa,formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani during their meeting in Damascus,Syria,on Sunday.

Suit,tie and a new name:Syria’s rebel chief turns statesman

The former Abu Mohammed al-Jolani,leader of the offensive that overthrew the Assad regime,is trying to build a new state.

  • Adam Rasgon

In defence of the middle ground on Gaza

Rodger Shanahan perfectly sums up the disturbing nature of Middle East commentary,where “advocates press hard for their side without conceding any ground to the other”.

CNN syria jail gif

CNN investigates claim man ‘rescued’ from Syrian jail was part of Assad’s forces

The man found under a blanket in a prison in Damascus had claimed he had been arrested three months ago and interrogated about his phone contacts.

  • Benedict Smith
Deposed Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.

‘Never considered stepping down’:Bashar al-Assad says Russia forced him to flee Syria

In his first statement since the fall of Damascus,the exiled former president said he wanted to continue fighting.

  • Daniel Hardaker
Mick Kelly and Penny Wong.

Australia’s damning of Israel is poisonous. I say that as an ex-Labor minister

Israel has the right under international law to use military force to defend its very existence. The Albanese government’s response is despicable.

  • Mike Kelly
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Imagery from an Israeli airstrike.

Israel destroys Syria’s navy,its troops advance over border

Israeli troops are advancing up the Syrian side of the border with Lebanon and had come within 25 kilometres of Damascus,two sources said.

  • Bassem Mroue andAbdulrahman Shaheen
Smoke rises in the aftermath of suspected IDF strikes near Mezzeh Air Base in Damascus.

Israel attacks Syrian air bases,destroying dozens of aircraft,say Syrian sources

The United Nations says Israeli forces are occupying a demilitarised buffer zone between Israel and Syria in violation of a 1974 ceasefire agreement.

A man holds up rope at Sednaya Prison,where thousands of people were said to be detained and tortured.

The race to rescue those trapped in Syria’s ‘human slaughterhouse’

Footage emerging from the liberation of Bashar al-Assad’s most notorious prisons has revealed underground cells and body-crushing iron presses used to detain and torture.

  • Sarah Newey
Hundreds of Sunni Muslims gather in celebration,marking the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s long and brutal reign in Syria.

Fall of the house of Assad gives Syrians a fragile new hope

The rebels’ lightning offensive ousted the head of a country bled dry by decades of neglect and an appalling civil war. It offers hope to some,despair to others.

  • The Herald's View