While the victory against Bashar Assad’s forces is a triumph, the jihadist-turned-statesman who is now in charge has a lengthy to-do list.

Russia’s abandonment of the Assad regime to marshal more resources for the fight against Ukraine vividly illustrates that Putin is ready to sacrifice everything for total victory in the war. Although Putin tries to portray himself as a realist, he has become consumed with Ukraine, to the exclusion of almost all other foreign policy imperatives.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israeli troops will remain in Syrian territory indefinitely, blurring the border with Israel's northern neighbor.

Assad, old alliances have crumbled, and global powers are figuring out their relationships with Syria’s new de facto leaders.

In the past week, the Pentagon has acknowledged that its footprint in Iraq and Syria is bigger than it has claimed for years

A Pentagon spokesman said the increase was unrelated to the fall of President Bashar al-Assad to rebel forces in early December.

The Pentagon announced the US currently has “approximately 2,000” troops in Syria, more than double the previously disclosed number of 900, a Defense Department spokesperson said at a press briefing on Thursday.

Qatar and Jordan are the latest in the region to send delegations to meet with Syria’s new leaders, including Ahmed al-Sharaa, head of Hayʼat Tahrir al-Sham.

Will he walk the walk and not just talk the talk? And if he doesn’t win in the elections, will he peacefully stand aside for whoever does win?” one analyst said.

Sham, or HTS, made a lightning assault across Syria. Where did the rebels get the cash, weapons and training that made their takeover possible?

After public protests and then rebellion erupted in Syria in 2011, Assad’s regime clung to power through systemic torture and relentless military campaigns with support from Iran, Russia, and an array of allied militias.