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| Meta Title | Syrian Civil War | Syrian history | Britannica |
| Meta Description | In March 2011 Syriaâs government, led by Pres. Bashar al-Assad, faced an unprecedented challenge to its authority when pro-democracy protests erupted throughout the country. Protesters demanded an end to the authoritarian practices of the Assad regime, in place since Assadâs father, Hafez al-Assad, |
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| Boilerpipe Text | Although it is impossible to pinpoint when the uprising turned from a predominately peaceful protest movement into a militarized rebellion, armed clashes became increasingly common, and by September 2011 organized rebel militias were regularly engaging in combat with government troops in cities around Syria. The
Free Syrian Army
, a rebel umbrella group formed by defectors from the Syrian army in July, claimed leadership over the armed opposition fighting in Syria, but its authority was largely unrecognized by the local militias.
Late 2011 and early 2012 saw a series of ill-fated efforts by international organizations to bring the conflict to an end. In early November 2011 Syrian officials agreed to an
Arab League
initiative calling for the Syrian government to stop violence against protesters, remove tanks and armored vehicles from cities, and release political prisoners. In December 2011 the Syrian government agreed to permit a delegation of monitors from the Arab League to visit Syria to observe the implementation of the plan. The observer mission quickly lost credibility with the opposition as it became clear that not enough monitors and equipment had been sent and that the Syrian government had presented the monitors with orchestrated scenes and restricted their movements. Amid concerns for the monitorsâ safety, the Arab League ended the mission in January 28.
A second agreement, this time brokered by former UN secretary-general
Kofi Annan
and sponsored by the UN and the Arab League, produced a short partial ceasefire in April 2012. But violence soon resumed and reached higher levels than before, and the UN team of monitors, like their Arab League predecessors, had to be withdrawn for security reasons.
Having had little success in creating peace between the combatants themselves, the UN and the Arab League sought to enlist the international powers in support of a political settlement to the conflict. In June 2012 an international conference organized by the UN produced the Geneva Communiqué, which provided a road map for negotiations to establish a transitional governing body for Syria. The United States and Russia were unable to agree on whether Assad would be included in a future Syrian government, though, so this was left unspecified.
By early 2012 it was becoming clear that the
Syrian National Council
(SNC), an opposition umbrella group formed in Istanbul in August 2011, was too narrow and too weakened by infighting to effectively represent the opposition. Much of the infighting was the result of crosscutting streams of support flowing to different rebel factions as donor countriesâ efforts to prioritize their own agendas and maximize their influence over the opposition created conflicts and prevented any single group from developing the stature to lead. After months of contentious diplomacy, in November Syrian opposition leaders announced the formation of a new coalition called the
National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces
. Over the next month the coalition received recognition from dozens of countries as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people. The divisions and rivalries that had plagued the Syrian National Council were nevertheless still present in the new organization.
Arab Spring Events
The summer and fall of 2012 saw a string of tactical sucesses for the rebels. Government troops were forced to withdraw from areas in the north and east, allowing the rebels to control significant territory for the first time. In July rebels attacked
Aleppo
, Syriaâs largest city, establishing a foothold in the eastern part of the city. By early 2013, though, the military situation appeared to be approaching stalemate. Rebel fighters kept a firm hold on northern areas but were held back by deficiencies in equipment, weaponry, and organization. Meanwhile, government forces, weakened by defections, also seemed incapable of making large gains. Daily fighting continued in contested areas, pushing the civilian death toll higher and higher.
With no decisive outcome in sight, the international allies of the Syrian government and the rebels stepped up their support, raising the prospect of a regional proxy war. Efforts by
Turkey
,
Saudi Arabia
, and
Qatar
to fund and arm rebels became increasingly public in late 2012 and 2013. The United States, which had been reluctant to send weapons for fear of inadvertently arming
radical jihadists
who would someday turn against the West, eventually started a modest program to train and equip a few vetted rebel groups. The Syrian government continued to receive weapons from
Iran
and the Lebanese militant group
Hezbollah
. By late 2012 Hezbollah had also begun sending its own fighters into Syria to battle the rebels.
Use of chemical weapons
There were new calls for international military action in Syria after suspected chemical weapons attacks in the suburbs of Damascus killed hundreds on August 21, 2013. The Syrian opposition accused pro-Assad forces of having carried out the attacks. Syrian officials denied having used chemical weapons and asserted that if such weapons had been used, rebel forces were to blame. While UN weapons inspectors collected evidence at the sites of the alleged chemical attacks, U.S., British, and French leaders denounced the use of chemical weapons and made it known that they were considering retaliatory strikes against the Assad regime.
Russia
,
China, and Iran spoke out against military action, and Assad vowed to fight what he described as Western aggression.
The prospect of international military intervention in Syria began to fade by the end of August, in part because it became evident that majorities in the
United States
and the
United Kingdom
were opposed to military action. A motion in the British Parliament to authorize strikes in Syria failed on August 29, and a similar vote in the U.S. Congress was postponed on September 10. Meanwhile, diplomacy took center stage, resulting in an agreement between Russia, Syria, and the United States on September 14 to place all of Syriaâs chemical weapons under international control. The agreement was carried out and all declared chemical weapons were removed from Syria by the agreementâs deadline of June 30, 2014.
The rise of the Nusrah Front and ISIS
In 2013 Islamist militants began to take center stage as the non-Islamist factions faltered from exhaustion and infighting. The Nusrah Front (Jabhat al-NuáčŁrah), an
al-Qaeda
affiliate operating in Syria, partnered with a variety of other opposition groups and was generally considered to be one of the most-effective fighting forces. Although the coalition was later transformed into
Hayat al-Tahrir al-Sham
(HTS)âthe rebel group that led the successful overthrow of Assad in 2024âit was soon overshadowed in 2013 by a group entering the fray from Iraq: in April
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
, the leader of
al-Qaeda in Iraq
, declared that he would combine his forces in Iraq with the Nusrah Front under the name
Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
(ISIS). The Nusrah Front rejected the merger, and the two groups ended up fighting with each other as ISIS began competing for dominance in eastern Syria, beginning with an area in the Euphrates valley centered on the city of
Al-Raqqah
and expanding along the Iraq-Syria border.
International intervention and the entrance of Russian forces
Aleppo, Syria: injured boy
A child sitting in an ambulance after his home was destroyed by an air strike in Aleppo, Syria, August 2016.
ISISâs sudden advances in Iraq, which were accompanied by a steady stream of violent and provocative propaganda, added urgency to the international communityâs calls for action. On August 8 the United States launched air strikes in Iraq to prevent ISIS from advancing into the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq and to shield Christian and
Yazīdī
communities there. The strikes slowed the groupâs advance, but a series of videos showing ISIS fighters beheading Western aid workers and journalists amplified fears that the group posed a global threat. On September 23 the United States and a coalition of Arab states expanded the air campaign to strike ISIS targets in Syria.
In the summer of 2015, Russia began to take a more-active role in the conflict, deploying troops and military equipment to an air base near
Latakia
. In September Russia launched its first air strikes against targets in Syria. Russian officials originally claimed that the air strikes were targeting ISIS, but it quickly became clear that they were targeting mostly rebels fighting against Assad, with the intention of bolstering their ally.
After a short ceasefire between Russian and Syrian government forces and Western-backed rebels collapsed in September 2016, Russia and the Syrian government forces turned their focus to the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo, unleashing a fierce bombing campaign. Russian and Syrian forces made no attempt to avoid causing civilian casualties in their efforts to subdue the rebels; warplanes dropped indiscriminate munitions such as cluster bombs and incendiary bombs and targeted medical facilities, search and rescue teams, and aid workers. Those actions were condemned by human rights groups, but they continued unabated until the rebels in Aleppo collapsed in December.
By 2016 ISIS, which only a few years earlier had appeared to be nearly unstoppable in northern and eastern Syria, was beginning to collapse under the strain of its simultaneous confrontations with three rival coalitionsâKurdish forces and their American allies, pro-Assad Syrian forces supported by Iran and Russia, and a Turkish-backed coalition of rebel groups. In the north, Kurdish and Turkish-supported forces gradually consolidated their hold on the areas along the Turkish border, depriving ISIS of a strategically important territory. Meanwhile, an escalating U.S.-led air campaign weakened ISISâs grip on key strongholds. ISISâs ideological rivals, including the
Nusrah Front
led by
Abu Mohammad al-Jolani
(Golani; byname of Ahmed al-Sharaa), merged into
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham
(HTS) and together fought ISIS in Idlib, capturing territory held by ISIS in the area. In June 2017 the mostly Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) launched an assault on Al-Raqqah, ISISâs de facto capital in Syria, with support from U.S. air power and special forces. In October the SDF announced that Al-Raqqah had been cleared of ISIS forces. In the east, Assadâs forces continued to pressure ISIS, forcing them out of Deir al-Zour in November 2017. Meanwhile, that same month, HTS announced the creation of what it called the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG) to govern Idlib; the SSGâs experience governing Idlib helped lay the foundation for HTS-led governance of Syria after the overthrow of Assad in 2024.
While government forces continued to gain ground, Western governments increasingly intervened in the conflict. After a chemical weapons attack was carried out in KhÄn ShaykhĆ«n in April 2017, the United States barraged Shayrat air base near Homs with 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles. A year later, after the Syrian government used chemical weapons in Douma, U.S., British, and French forces launched more than 100 strikes targeting chemical weapons facilities near Damascus and Homs.
Israel targeted the Iranian military in Syria in 2018. After Iran shelled the
Golan Heights
in response, Israel launched its heaviest barrage in Syria since the civil war began. Dozens of Iranian military sites were targeted, and Israel claimed to have destroyed nearly all of Iranâs military infrastructure in Syria.
Assad government restores control over most of Syria
In June 2018, having solidified their hold on the areas around Damascus and Homs, Syrian government forces began a campaign to recapture rebel-held territories in the southwest province of Daraa, later expanding into
Quneitra
province. As the success of the government operation became clear, a deal was brokered with the help of Russia that allowed rebels safe passage to the rebel-held province of
Idlib
in the north in exchange for their surrender in southwest of the country.
Idlib was the last remaining region of the country that the rebels held, and the belligerents all began to brace themselves for an imminent clash. Aside from the governmentâs ability to now focus its military on recapturing just one region, and its history using chemical weapons, Turkeyâs military presence in support of the rebels helped guarantee that any government offensive would be met by a tough fight. Both Turkey and the Syrian government began to amass troops along the borders; Turkey reinforced its military within the province, while Syrian and Russian warplanes bombarded border towns.
Russia and Turkey attempted to de-escalate the situation by agreeing to and implementing a buffer zone between rebel and government forces. The buffer zone required all heavy weaponry and fighters to retreat from an area about 9 to 12 miles (15 to 20 km) wide. It was unclear at the time whether all parties would observe the deal, a top-down agreement. The Syrian government and mainstream rebel groups, such as the Free Syrian Army, quickly embraced the buffer zone agreement. Groups sympathetic to al-Qaedaâs ideology, such as HTS, remained wild cards, though they appeared to signal that they would comply. They quietly pulled heavy weaponry from the buffer zone, though many fighters appeared to remain past the October 15 deadline.
As part of the agreement, Turkey was responsible for preventing the most radical groups, such as HTS, to prosper in the region. HTS, however, launched an offensive against other rebel groups in January 2019 and soon became the dominant force in Idlib. In April Syrian forces crossed the buffer zone and began an offensive in Idlib with the help of Russian air strikes. They captured territory before a counteroffensive launched in June was able to push the battle back into government-controlled areas.
In October the conflict expanded eastward. Turkey launched an offensive into Syriaâs Kurdish-held northeast region, days after the United States announced that it would not stand in the way. The country aimed to destabilize Kurdish separatists in Syria who were allies of the
Kurdistan Workersâ Party
(PKK) in Turkey and to make a safe zone in the region for the repatriation of Syrian refugees in Turkey. Kurdish forces quickly forged a deal with Assad for assistance, allowing government forces to re-enter the region for the first time since 2012.
Although Turkey had largely steered clear of direct confrontation with the Syrian government throughout the conflict, the Syrian government offensive in Idlib, backed by Russian air strikes, sometimes led to Turkish casualties and retaliation. In late February 2020 the conflict escalated briefly after dozens of Turkish soldiers were killed in an air strike and Turkish forces retaliated directly against the Syrian army. The confrontation soon ended, however, after a general ceasefire was negotiated by Turkey and Russia a week later. In 2023, as the war seemed to settle down, the
Arab League
reinstated Syriaâs membership in the organization.
Assad overthrown and the creation of a new government
A new rebel offensive took place in 2024, however, after international support for government forces was considerably weakened. Assistance from Russia was already mitigated by its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in the
Russia-Ukraine War
. Iran, another important ally for the government, suffered setbacks in 2024 as the
Israel-Hamas War
brought it into conflict with Israel. Israeli strikes resulted in significant blows to Iranâs strategic assets and allies in the region (including, notably, inside Syria).
Hezbollah
in particularâa key component in Assadâs fight against the rebelsâwas diminished by Israeli bombardment of
Lebanon
lasting from September to November.
In October Hezbollah pulled its fighters back from Syria as it defended its front lines against a ground invasion, and, by the end of the fighting, more than half a million Syrian refugees in Lebanon had fled back into Syria. When a ceasefire deal was announced between Israel and Hezbollah on November 26, Hezbollah had agreed to considerable concessions and had limited capacity to resume combat outside Lebanon. The next day HTS began advancing in the provinces of Idlib and Aleppo. On November 29 HTS fighters entered
Aleppo
âs city center and forced government forces to withdraw from the city. Russian jets responded the next day with air strikes against HTS, but HTS managed to extend its advance to Hama within a week.
Daraa
and
Homs
were captured on December 7, effectively isolating Damascus and cutting it off from bases and ports that would allow the Syrian army to reinforce and resupply Damascusâs defenses. That same day rebel forces entered Damascus and in the overnight hours took control. Assad was found to have already fled; rebel forces and Assadâs prime minister attempted to arrange a stable transfer of power in order to keep government institutions in tact.
Leading a revolutionary offensive
Ahmed al-Sharaa (previously known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al-Jolani) speaking at the landmark Great Mosque of Damascus after ousting Syrian Pres. Bashar al-Assad from power on December 8, 2024.
On December 10 HTS announced Mohammed al-Bashir, the head of the SSG in Idlib, would take over as interim prime minister until March and that government services would continue as usual.
Ahmed al-Sharaa
, the leader of HTS and the de facto leader of the interim government, was formally proclaimed interim president in January. Sharaa indicated his intention for a careful and inclusive constitutional process that would take place over the span of several years and he called for all armed factions, including HTS, to dissolve in favor of a common government force. But it was unclear to what extent the members of HTS had shed their former affiliation with al-Qaedaâs
jihadist
ideology, especially as the interim government quickly moved to inject certain conservative norms into schools and mosques. In early Marchâas Bashir and the interim government remained in power with an uncertain timeline for elections or a new constitutionâforces loyal to the interim government launched a crackdown against supporters of the Assad regime in predominantly Alawite areas of western Syria. More than 1,000 people, mostly civilians, were killed by government forces in the span of four days.
Meanwhile, the interim government reached an agreement with the SDF to integrate the Kurdish-led militia into the new government in exchange for guarantees that
Kurds
would enjoy full rights as equal citizens in the new Syria. The agreement came days after
Abdullah Ăcalan
, a jailed Kurdish leader in Turkey, called on his militant organization the
Kurdistan Workersâ Party
(PKK) to disarm and disband, prompting the PKK to declare a ceasefire with the Turkish government. |
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# Syrian Civil War
Syrian history
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### What is the Syrian Civil War?
The Syrian Civil War began in 2011 after pro-democracy protests swept through Syria during the [Arab Spring](https://www.britannica.com/event/Arab-Spring), threatening the rule of Syrian President [Bashar al-Assad](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bashar-al-Assad). His violent suppression of protesters escalated into war between Assadâs forces and opposition militias. An offensive led by [Hayat Tahrir al-Sham](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hayat-Tahrir-al-Sham) resulted in Assad being removed from power in December 2024. The Syrian Civil War has been a source of significant instability in the Middle East since 2011, and the resultant civilian displacement and refugee exodus constitute one of the worst humanitarian crises in modern history.
### How did the Syrian Civil War begin?
From 2006 to 2010 Syria suffered its worst drought in modern history. The combined effects of the drought and preexisting economic disparities under the Assad regime contributed to the first nonviolent pro-reform protests, in 2011, riding the wave of [Arab Spring](https://www.britannica.com/event/Arab-Spring) uprisings. Divisions between the countryâs [Sunni](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Sunni) majority and the ruling [Alawite](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Alawite) elite were also a factor. The [Bashar al-Assad](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bashar-al-Assad) regimeâs harsh military crackdown escalated tensions, and by September 2011 the peaceful protests had become an armed insurgency.
### Who are the major combatants in the Syrian Civil War?
There have been many parties involved in the Syrian Civil War. The Syrian Arab Army (SAA), which has fought alongside [Hezbollah](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hezbollah) and numerous [ShiÊżi](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Shii) militias, was under the control of Syrian President [Bashar al-Assad](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bashar-al-Assad) until his removal from power in December 2024. Assad also received foreign support from Russia and Iran. Opposition forces have included the Southern Front, the [Kurdish](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kurd)\-dominant Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and a coalition of SAA defectors. These groups have been supported by Western powers such as the United States and Germany. Regional support comes from Turkey, Jordan, Israel, and Saudi Arabia. Militant Islamist organizations including [ISIS](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islamic-State-in-Iraq-and-the-Levant) and [Hayat Tahrir al-Sham](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hayat-Tahrir-al-Sham) (HTS) also opposed the Assad regime, with HTS leading an offensive in NovemberâDecember 2024 that ousted Assad.
### Have chemical weapons been used in the Syrian Civil War?
In 2012 Syrian President [Bashar al-Assad](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bashar-al-Assad)âs regime confirmed for the first time its possession of a [chemical weapons](https://www.britannica.com/technology/chemical-weapon) arsenal. Syria threatened to deploy chemical weapons against foreign aggressors but stressed that it would never use them on civilians. Since 2012, however, numerous multinational investigations have uncovered Syrian chemical weapons attacks that number in âthe low dozensâ and have targeted Syrian civilians. The deadliest occurred in 2013 in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta. The Assad government denied using chemical weapons.
### What has been the humanitarian impact of the Syrian Civil War?
Since its start in 2011 and through 2018, the Syrian Civil War created the largest refugee population in the world, constituting over a third of the global refugee population. In 2018 the [United Nations](https://www.britannica.com/topic/United-Nations) recorded 6.7 million Syrian refugees, nearly 40 percent of Syriaâs population that year. Most fled to Turkey and other regional allies, but hundreds of thousands have found asylum in Germany, the United States, and Canada. Within Syria itself, an estimated 6.5 million civilians have been displaced. Several human rights organizations have called the Syrian Civil War the worst humanitarian crisis of the 21st century.
## News âą
[The Syrian Uprising Began 15 Years Ago. Then Came the Regimeâs Deadly Crackdown.](https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/anniversary-syrian-uprising-assad-regime-crackdown-documentary/) âą Mar. 11, 2026, 7:01 PM ET (PBS)
Show less
In March 2011 [Syriaâs](https://www.britannica.com/place/Syria) government, led by Pres. [Bashar al-Assad](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bashar-al-Assad), faced an unprecedented challenge to its authority when pro-[democracy](https://www.britannica.com/topic/democracy) protests erupted throughout the country. Protesters demanded an end to the authoritarian practices of the Assad regime, in place since Assadâs father, [Hafez al-Assad](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hafiz-al-Assad), became president in 1971. The Syrian government used violence to suppress demonstrations, making extensive use of police, military, and paramilitary forces. Opposition militias began to form in 2011, and by 2012 the conflict had expanded into a full-fledged civil war. In late November 2024, as the governmentâs support from military allies collapsed, it was unable to stave off a rapid offensive by opposition forces and in early December Assad fled the country. The civil war continued after Assadâs fall as a new government took shape and worked to assert control over all of Syria.
## Uprising
In January 2011, Syrian Pres. Bashar al-Assad was asked [in an interview](https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703833204576114712441122894) with *The Wall Street Journal* if he expected the wave of [popular protest](https://www.britannica.com/event/Arab-Spring) then sweeping through the Arab worldâwhich had already unseated authoritarian rulers in [Tunisia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Tunisia) and [Egypt](https://www.britannica.com/place/Egypt)âto reach Syria. Assad acknowledged that there had been economic hardships for many Syrians and that progress toward political reform had been slow and halting, but he was confident that Syria would be spared because his administrationâs stance of resistance to the [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States) and [Israel](https://www.britannica.com/place/Israel) aligned with the beliefs of the Syrian people, whereas the leaders who had already fallen had carried out pro-Western foreign policy in defiance of their peopleâs feelings.
The onset of antiregime protests, coming just a few weeks after the interview, made it clear that Assadâs situation had been much more precarious than he was willing to admit. In reality, a variety of long-standing political and economic problems were pushing the country toward instability. When Assad succeeded his father in 2000, he came to the presidency with a reputation as a modernizer and a reformer. The hopes that were raised by Assadâs presidency went largely unfulfilled, though. In politics, a brief turn toward greater participation was quickly reversed, and Assad revived the authoritarian tactics of his late fatherâs administration, including pervasive censorship and surveillance and brutal violence against suspected opponents of the regime. Assad also oversaw significant liberalization of Syriaâs state-dominated economy, but those changes mostly served to enrich a network of crony capitalists with ties to the regime. On the eve of the uprising, then, Syrian society remained highly repressive, with increasingly conspicuous inequalities in wealth and privilege.
Environmental crisis also played a role in Syriaâs uprising. Between 2006 and 2010, Syria experienced the worst drought in the countryâs modern history. Hundreds of thousands of farming families were reduced to poverty, causing a mass migration of rural people to urban shantytowns.
It was in the impoverished drought-stricken rural province of [Daraa](https://www.britannica.com/place/Daraa), in southern Syria, that the first major protests occurred in March 2011. A group of children had been arrested and tortured by the authorities for writing antiregime graffiti; incensed local people took to the street to demonstrate for political and economic reforms. Security forces responded harshly, conducting mass arrests and sometimes firing on demonstrators. The violence of the regimeâs response added visibility and momentum to the protestersâ cause, and within weeks similar nonviolent protests had begun to appear in cities around the country. Videos of security forces beating and firing at protestersâcaptured by witnesses on mobile phonesâwere circulated around the country and smuggled out to foreign media outlets.
[ Britannica Quiz Pick Your Battles Quiz](https://www.britannica.com/quiz/pick-your-battles-quiz)
From early on, the uprising and the regimeâs response had a sectarian dimension. Many of the protesters belonged to the countryâs [Sunni](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Sunni) majority, while the ruling Assad family were members of the countryâs [Alawite](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Alawite) minority. Alawites also dominated the security forces and the irregular militias that carried out some of the worst violence against protesters and suspected opponents of the regime. Sectarian divisions were initially not as rigid as is sometimes supposed, though; the political and economic elite with ties to the regime included members of all of Syriaâs confessional groupsânot just Alawitesâwhile many middle- and working-class Alawites did not particularly benefit from belonging to the same community as the Assad family and may have shared some of the protestersâ socioeconomic grievances.
As the conflict progressed, however, sectarian divisions hardened. In his public statements, Assad sought to portray the opposition as Sunni Islamic extremists in the mold of [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda) and as participants in foreign conspiracies against Syria. The regime also produced propaganda stoking minoritiesâ fears that the predominately Sunni opposition would carry out violent reprisals against non-Sunni communities.
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As the protests increased in strength and size, the regime responded with heavier force. In some cases this meant encircling cities or neighborhoods that had become hubs of protest, such as BÄniyÄs or [Homs](https://www.britannica.com/place/Homs), with [tanks](https://www.britannica.com/technology/tank-military-vehicle), [artillery](https://www.britannica.com/technology/artillery), and attack [helicopters](https://www.britannica.com/technology/helicopter) and cutting off utilities and communications. In response, some groups of protesters began to take up arms against the security forces. In June, Syrian troops and tanks moved into the northern town of Jisr al-ShugĆ«r, sending a stream of thousands of refugees fleeing into Turkey.
By the summer of 2011 Syriaâs regional neighbors and the global powers had both begun to split into pro- and anti-Assad camps. The United States and the European Union were increasingly critical of Assad as his crackdown continued, and U.S. Pres. [Barack Obama](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Barack-Obama) and several European heads of state called for him to step down in August 2011. An anti-Assad bloc consisting of Qatar, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia formed in the last half of 2011. The United States, the EU, and the [Arab League](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Arab-League) soon introduced sanctions targeting senior members of the Assad regime.
Quick Facts
Date:
February 2011 - present
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Location:
[Syria](https://www.britannica.com/place/Syria)
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Participants:
[Free Syrian Army](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Free-Syrian-Army)
[Islamic State in Iraq and Syria](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islamic-State-in-Iraq-and-the-Levant)
*(Show more)*
Context:
[Arab Spring](https://www.britannica.com/event/Arab-Spring)
*(Show more)*
Key People:
[Vladimir Putin](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vladimir-Putin)
[Bashar al-Assad](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bashar-al-Assad)
[Barack Obama](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Barack-Obama)
*(Show more)*
[See all related content](https://www.britannica.com/facts/Syrian-Civil-War)
Meanwhile, Syriaâs long-standing allies [Iran](https://www.britannica.com/place/Iran) and [Russia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Russia) continued their support. An early indicator of the international divisions and rivalries that would prolong the conflict came in October 2011 when Russia and China cast the first of several vetoes blocking a UN Security Council Resolution that would have condemned Assadâs crackdown.
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Syrian Civil War
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# Civil war
Although it is impossible to pinpoint when the uprising turned from a predominately peaceful protest movement into a militarized rebellion, armed clashes became increasingly common, and by September 2011 organized rebel militias were regularly engaging in combat with government troops in cities around Syria. The [Free Syrian Army](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Free-Syrian-Army), a rebel umbrella group formed by defectors from the Syrian army in July, claimed leadership over the armed opposition fighting in Syria, but its authority was largely unrecognized by the local militias.
Late 2011 and early 2012 saw a series of ill-fated efforts by international organizations to bring the conflict to an end. In early November 2011 Syrian officials agreed to an [Arab League](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Arab-League) initiative calling for the Syrian government to stop violence against protesters, remove tanks and armored vehicles from cities, and release political prisoners. In December 2011 the Syrian government agreed to permit a delegation of monitors from the Arab League to visit Syria to observe the implementation of the plan. The observer mission quickly lost credibility with the opposition as it became clear that not enough monitors and equipment had been sent and that the Syrian government had presented the monitors with orchestrated scenes and restricted their movements. Amid concerns for the monitorsâ safety, the Arab League ended the mission in January 28.
A second agreement, this time brokered by former UN secretary-general [Kofi Annan](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Kofi-Annan) and sponsored by the UN and the Arab League, produced a short partial ceasefire in April 2012. But violence soon resumed and reached higher levels than before, and the UN team of monitors, like their Arab League predecessors, had to be withdrawn for security reasons.
Having had little success in creating peace between the combatants themselves, the UN and the Arab League sought to enlist the international powers in support of a political settlement to the conflict. In June 2012 an international conference organized by the UN produced the Geneva Communiqué, which provided a road map for negotiations to establish a transitional governing body for Syria. The United States and Russia were unable to agree on whether Assad would be included in a future Syrian government, though, so this was left unspecified.
By early 2012 it was becoming clear that the [Syrian National Council](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Syrian-National-Council) (SNC), an opposition umbrella group formed in Istanbul in August 2011, was too narrow and too weakened by infighting to effectively represent the opposition. Much of the infighting was the result of crosscutting streams of support flowing to different rebel factions as donor countriesâ efforts to prioritize their own agendas and maximize their influence over the opposition created conflicts and prevented any single group from developing the stature to lead. After months of contentious diplomacy, in November Syrian opposition leaders announced the formation of a new coalition called the [National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces](https://www.britannica.com/topic/National-Coalition-for-Syrian-Revolutionary-and-Opposition-Forces). Over the next month the coalition received recognition from dozens of countries as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people. The divisions and rivalries that had plagued the Syrian National Council were nevertheless still present in the new organization.
Arab Spring Events
keyboard\_arrow\_left
[ Jasmine Revolution December 17, 2010 - January 14, 2011](https://www.britannica.com/event/Jasmine-Revolution "Jasmine Revolution")
[ Yemen Uprising of 2011â12 January 27, 2011 - 2012](https://www.britannica.com/event/Yemen-Uprising-of-2011-2012 "Yemen Uprising of 2011â12")
[ Syrian Civil War February 2011 - present](https://www.britannica.com/event/Syrian-Civil-War "Syrian Civil War")
[ Libya Revolt of 2011 February 15, 2011 - present](https://www.britannica.com/event/Libya-Revolt-of-2011 "Libya Revolt of 2011")
keyboard\_arrow\_right
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- 2
The summer and fall of 2012 saw a string of tactical sucesses for the rebels. Government troops were forced to withdraw from areas in the north and east, allowing the rebels to control significant territory for the first time. In July rebels attacked [Aleppo](https://www.britannica.com/place/Aleppo), Syriaâs largest city, establishing a foothold in the eastern part of the city. By early 2013, though, the military situation appeared to be approaching stalemate. Rebel fighters kept a firm hold on northern areas but were held back by deficiencies in equipment, weaponry, and organization. Meanwhile, government forces, weakened by defections, also seemed incapable of making large gains. Daily fighting continued in contested areas, pushing the civilian death toll higher and higher.
With no decisive outcome in sight, the international allies of the Syrian government and the rebels stepped up their support, raising the prospect of a regional proxy war. Efforts by [Turkey](https://www.britannica.com/place/Turkey), [Saudi Arabia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Saudi-Arabia), and [Qatar](https://www.britannica.com/place/Qatar) to fund and arm rebels became increasingly public in late 2012 and 2013. The United States, which had been reluctant to send weapons for fear of inadvertently arming [radical jihadists](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islamism#ref344561) who would someday turn against the West, eventually started a modest program to train and equip a few vetted rebel groups. The Syrian government continued to receive weapons from [Iran](https://www.britannica.com/place/Iran) and the Lebanese militant group [Hezbollah](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hezbollah). By late 2012 Hezbollah had also begun sending its own fighters into Syria to battle the rebels.
## Use of chemical weapons
There were new calls for international military action in Syria after suspected chemical weapons attacks in the suburbs of Damascus killed hundreds on August 21, 2013. The Syrian opposition accused pro-Assad forces of having carried out the attacks. Syrian officials denied having used chemical weapons and asserted that if such weapons had been used, rebel forces were to blame. While UN weapons inspectors collected evidence at the sites of the alleged chemical attacks, U.S., British, and French leaders denounced the use of chemical weapons and made it known that they were considering retaliatory strikes against the Assad regime. [Russia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Russia), China, and Iran spoke out against military action, and Assad vowed to fight what he described as Western aggression.
The prospect of international military intervention in Syria began to fade by the end of August, in part because it became evident that majorities in the [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States) and the [United Kingdom](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-Kingdom) were opposed to military action. A motion in the British Parliament to authorize strikes in Syria failed on August 29, and a similar vote in the U.S. Congress was postponed on September 10. Meanwhile, diplomacy took center stage, resulting in an agreement between Russia, Syria, and the United States on September 14 to place all of Syriaâs chemical weapons under international control. The agreement was carried out and all declared chemical weapons were removed from Syria by the agreementâs deadline of June 30, 2014.
## The rise of the Nusrah Front and ISIS
In 2013 Islamist militants began to take center stage as the non-Islamist factions faltered from exhaustion and infighting. The Nusrah Front (Jabhat al-NuáčŁrah), an [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda) affiliate operating in Syria, partnered with a variety of other opposition groups and was generally considered to be one of the most-effective fighting forces. Although the coalition was later transformed into [Hayat al-Tahrir al-Sham](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hayat-Tahrir-al-Sham) (HTS)âthe rebel group that led the successful overthrow of Assad in 2024âit was soon overshadowed in 2013 by a group entering the fray from Iraq: in April [Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abu-Bakr-al-Baghdadi), the leader of [al-Qaeda in Iraq](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda-in-Iraq), declared that he would combine his forces in Iraq with the Nusrah Front under the name [Islamic State in Iraq and Syria](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islamic-State-in-Iraq-and-the-Levant) (ISIS). The Nusrah Front rejected the merger, and the two groups ended up fighting with each other as ISIS began competing for dominance in eastern Syria, beginning with an area in the Euphrates valley centered on the city of [Al-Raqqah](https://www.britannica.com/place/Al-Raqqah) and expanding along the Iraq-Syria border.
## International intervention and the entrance of Russian forces
[](https://cdn.britannica.com/03/192303-050-E2D8E7E1/child-air-strike-Syria-Aleppo-August-2016.jpg)
[Aleppo, Syria: injured boy](https://cdn.britannica.com/03/192303-050-E2D8E7E1/child-air-strike-Syria-Aleppo-August-2016.jpg)A child sitting in an ambulance after his home was destroyed by an air strike in Aleppo, Syria, August 2016.
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ISISâs sudden advances in Iraq, which were accompanied by a steady stream of violent and provocative propaganda, added urgency to the international communityâs calls for action. On August 8 the United States launched air strikes in Iraq to prevent ISIS from advancing into the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq and to shield Christian and [YazÄ«dÄ«](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Yazidi) communities there. The strikes slowed the groupâs advance, but a series of videos showing ISIS fighters beheading Western aid workers and journalists amplified fears that the group posed a global threat. On September 23 the United States and a coalition of Arab states expanded the air campaign to strike ISIS targets in Syria.
In the summer of 2015, Russia began to take a more-active role in the conflict, deploying troops and military equipment to an air base near [Latakia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Latakia-Syria). In September Russia launched its first air strikes against targets in Syria. Russian officials originally claimed that the air strikes were targeting ISIS, but it quickly became clear that they were targeting mostly rebels fighting against Assad, with the intention of bolstering their ally.
[](https://www.britannica.com/video/overview-citadel-Syria-Aleppo/-226648)
When was the ancient citadel of Aleppo built?An overview of the ancient citadel of Aleppo, Syria.
(more)
[See all videos for this article](https://www.britannica.com/event/Syrian-Civil-War/images-videos)
After a short ceasefire between Russian and Syrian government forces and Western-backed rebels collapsed in September 2016, Russia and the Syrian government forces turned their focus to the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo, unleashing a fierce bombing campaign. Russian and Syrian forces made no attempt to avoid causing civilian casualties in their efforts to subdue the rebels; warplanes dropped indiscriminate munitions such as cluster bombs and incendiary bombs and targeted medical facilities, search and rescue teams, and aid workers. Those actions were condemned by human rights groups, but they continued unabated until the rebels in Aleppo collapsed in December.
By 2016 ISIS, which only a few years earlier had appeared to be nearly unstoppable in northern and eastern Syria, was beginning to collapse under the strain of its simultaneous confrontations with three rival coalitionsâKurdish forces and their American allies, pro-Assad Syrian forces supported by Iran and Russia, and a Turkish-backed coalition of rebel groups. In the north, Kurdish and Turkish-supported forces gradually consolidated their hold on the areas along the Turkish border, depriving ISIS of a strategically important territory. Meanwhile, an escalating U.S.-led air campaign weakened ISISâs grip on key strongholds. ISISâs ideological rivals, including the [Nusrah Front](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Nusrah-Front-to-Protect-the-Levant) led by [Abu Mohammad al-Jolani](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ahmed-al-Sharaa) (Golani; byname of Ahmed al-Sharaa), merged into [Hayat Tahrir al-Sham](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hayat-Tahrir-al-Sham) (HTS) and together fought ISIS in Idlib, capturing territory held by ISIS in the area. In June 2017 the mostly Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) launched an assault on Al-Raqqah, ISISâs de facto capital in Syria, with support from U.S. air power and special forces. In October the SDF announced that Al-Raqqah had been cleared of ISIS forces. In the east, Assadâs forces continued to pressure ISIS, forcing them out of Deir al-Zour in November 2017. Meanwhile, that same month, HTS announced the creation of what it called the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG) to govern Idlib; the SSGâs experience governing Idlib helped lay the foundation for HTS-led governance of Syria after the overthrow of Assad in 2024.
While government forces continued to gain ground, Western governments increasingly intervened in the conflict. After a chemical weapons attack was carried out in KhÄn ShaykhĆ«n in April 2017, the United States barraged Shayrat air base near Homs with 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles. A year later, after the Syrian government used chemical weapons in Douma, U.S., British, and French forces launched more than 100 strikes targeting chemical weapons facilities near Damascus and Homs.
Israel targeted the Iranian military in Syria in 2018. After Iran shelled the [Golan Heights](https://www.britannica.com/place/Golan-Heights) in response, Israel launched its heaviest barrage in Syria since the civil war began. Dozens of Iranian military sites were targeted, and Israel claimed to have destroyed nearly all of Iranâs military infrastructure in Syria.
## Assad government restores control over most of Syria
In June 2018, having solidified their hold on the areas around Damascus and Homs, Syrian government forces began a campaign to recapture rebel-held territories in the southwest province of Daraa, later expanding into [Quneitra](https://www.britannica.com/place/al-Qunaytirah) province. As the success of the government operation became clear, a deal was brokered with the help of Russia that allowed rebels safe passage to the rebel-held province of [Idlib](https://www.britannica.com/place/Idlib) in the north in exchange for their surrender in southwest of the country.
Idlib was the last remaining region of the country that the rebels held, and the belligerents all began to brace themselves for an imminent clash. Aside from the governmentâs ability to now focus its military on recapturing just one region, and its history using chemical weapons, Turkeyâs military presence in support of the rebels helped guarantee that any government offensive would be met by a tough fight. Both Turkey and the Syrian government began to amass troops along the borders; Turkey reinforced its military within the province, while Syrian and Russian warplanes bombarded border towns.
Russia and Turkey attempted to de-escalate the situation by agreeing to and implementing a buffer zone between rebel and government forces. The buffer zone required all heavy weaponry and fighters to retreat from an area about 9 to 12 miles (15 to 20 km) wide. It was unclear at the time whether all parties would observe the deal, a top-down agreement. The Syrian government and mainstream rebel groups, such as the Free Syrian Army, quickly embraced the buffer zone agreement. Groups sympathetic to al-Qaedaâs ideology, such as HTS, remained wild cards, though they appeared to signal that they would comply. They quietly pulled heavy weaponry from the buffer zone, though many fighters appeared to remain past the October 15 deadline.
As part of the agreement, Turkey was responsible for preventing the most radical groups, such as HTS, to prosper in the region. HTS, however, launched an offensive against other rebel groups in January 2019 and soon became the dominant force in Idlib. In April Syrian forces crossed the buffer zone and began an offensive in Idlib with the help of Russian air strikes. They captured territory before a counteroffensive launched in June was able to push the battle back into government-controlled areas.
In October the conflict expanded eastward. Turkey launched an offensive into Syriaâs Kurdish-held northeast region, days after the United States announced that it would not stand in the way. The country aimed to destabilize Kurdish separatists in Syria who were allies of the [Kurdistan Workersâ Party](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kurdistan-Workers-Party) (PKK) in Turkey and to make a safe zone in the region for the repatriation of Syrian refugees in Turkey. Kurdish forces quickly forged a deal with Assad for assistance, allowing government forces to re-enter the region for the first time since 2012.
Although Turkey had largely steered clear of direct confrontation with the Syrian government throughout the conflict, the Syrian government offensive in Idlib, backed by Russian air strikes, sometimes led to Turkish casualties and retaliation. In late February 2020 the conflict escalated briefly after dozens of Turkish soldiers were killed in an air strike and Turkish forces retaliated directly against the Syrian army. The confrontation soon ended, however, after a general ceasefire was negotiated by Turkey and Russia a week later. In 2023, as the war seemed to settle down, the [Arab League](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Arab-League) reinstated Syriaâs membership in the organization.
## Assad overthrown and the creation of a new government
A new rebel offensive took place in 2024, however, after international support for government forces was considerably weakened. Assistance from Russia was already mitigated by its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in the [Russia-Ukraine War](https://www.britannica.com/event/Russia-Ukraine-War). Iran, another important ally for the government, suffered setbacks in 2024 as the [Israel-Hamas War](https://www.britannica.com/event/Israel-Hamas-War) brought it into conflict with Israel. Israeli strikes resulted in significant blows to Iranâs strategic assets and allies in the region (including, notably, inside Syria). [Hezbollah](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hezbollah) in particularâa key component in Assadâs fight against the rebelsâwas diminished by Israeli bombardment of [Lebanon](https://www.britannica.com/place/Lebanon) lasting from September to November.
In October Hezbollah pulled its fighters back from Syria as it defended its front lines against a ground invasion, and, by the end of the fighting, more than half a million Syrian refugees in Lebanon had fled back into Syria. When a ceasefire deal was announced between Israel and Hezbollah on November 26, Hezbollah had agreed to considerable concessions and had limited capacity to resume combat outside Lebanon. The next day HTS began advancing in the provinces of Idlib and Aleppo. On November 29 HTS fighters entered [Aleppo](https://www.britannica.com/place/Aleppo)âs city center and forced government forces to withdraw from the city. Russian jets responded the next day with air strikes against HTS, but HTS managed to extend its advance to Hama within a week. [Daraa](https://www.britannica.com/place/Daraa) and [Homs](https://www.britannica.com/place/Homs) were captured on December 7, effectively isolating Damascus and cutting it off from bases and ports that would allow the Syrian army to reinforce and resupply Damascusâs defenses. That same day rebel forces entered Damascus and in the overnight hours took control. Assad was found to have already fled; rebel forces and Assadâs prime minister attempted to arrange a stable transfer of power in order to keep government institutions in tact.
[](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/265101-050-1E16FC50/Hayat-Tahrir-al-sham-leader-Abu-Mohammad-al-Golani-Jolani-speech-Umayyad-Mosquie-Damascus-Syria-December-8-2024.jpg)
[Leading a revolutionary offensive](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/265101-050-1E16FC50/Hayat-Tahrir-al-sham-leader-Abu-Mohammad-al-Golani-Jolani-speech-Umayyad-Mosquie-Damascus-Syria-December-8-2024.jpg)Ahmed al-Sharaa (previously known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al-Jolani) speaking at the landmark Great Mosque of Damascus after ousting Syrian Pres. Bashar al-Assad from power on December 8, 2024.
(more)
On December 10 HTS announced Mohammed al-Bashir, the head of the SSG in Idlib, would take over as interim prime minister until March and that government services would continue as usual. [Ahmed al-Sharaa](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ahmed-al-Sharaa), the leader of HTS and the de facto leader of the interim government, was formally proclaimed interim president in January. Sharaa indicated his intention for a careful and inclusive constitutional process that would take place over the span of several years and he called for all armed factions, including HTS, to dissolve in favor of a common government force. But it was unclear to what extent the members of HTS had shed their former affiliation with al-Qaedaâs [jihadist](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islamism#ref344561) ideology, especially as the interim government quickly moved to inject certain conservative norms into schools and mosques. In early Marchâas Bashir and the interim government remained in power with an uncertain timeline for elections or a new constitutionâforces loyal to the interim government launched a crackdown against supporters of the Assad regime in predominantly Alawite areas of western Syria. More than 1,000 people, mostly civilians, were killed by government forces in the span of four days.
Meanwhile, the interim government reached an agreement with the SDF to integrate the Kurdish-led militia into the new government in exchange for guarantees that [Kurds](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kurd) would enjoy full rights as equal citizens in the new Syria. The agreement came days after [Abdullah Ăcalan](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abdullah-Ocalan), a jailed Kurdish leader in Turkey, called on his militant organization the [Kurdistan Workersâ Party](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kurdistan-Workers-Party) (PKK) to disarm and disband, prompting the PKK to declare a ceasefire with the Turkish government.
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- [NPR - Syria's Civil War Started A Decade Ago. Here's Where It Stands](https://www.npr.org/2021/03/15/976352794/syrias-civil-war-started-a-decade-ago-heres-where-it-stands) |
| Readable Markdown | Although it is impossible to pinpoint when the uprising turned from a predominately peaceful protest movement into a militarized rebellion, armed clashes became increasingly common, and by September 2011 organized rebel militias were regularly engaging in combat with government troops in cities around Syria. The [Free Syrian Army](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Free-Syrian-Army), a rebel umbrella group formed by defectors from the Syrian army in July, claimed leadership over the armed opposition fighting in Syria, but its authority was largely unrecognized by the local militias.
Late 2011 and early 2012 saw a series of ill-fated efforts by international organizations to bring the conflict to an end. In early November 2011 Syrian officials agreed to an [Arab League](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Arab-League) initiative calling for the Syrian government to stop violence against protesters, remove tanks and armored vehicles from cities, and release political prisoners. In December 2011 the Syrian government agreed to permit a delegation of monitors from the Arab League to visit Syria to observe the implementation of the plan. The observer mission quickly lost credibility with the opposition as it became clear that not enough monitors and equipment had been sent and that the Syrian government had presented the monitors with orchestrated scenes and restricted their movements. Amid concerns for the monitorsâ safety, the Arab League ended the mission in January 28.
A second agreement, this time brokered by former UN secretary-general [Kofi Annan](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Kofi-Annan) and sponsored by the UN and the Arab League, produced a short partial ceasefire in April 2012. But violence soon resumed and reached higher levels than before, and the UN team of monitors, like their Arab League predecessors, had to be withdrawn for security reasons.
Having had little success in creating peace between the combatants themselves, the UN and the Arab League sought to enlist the international powers in support of a political settlement to the conflict. In June 2012 an international conference organized by the UN produced the Geneva Communiqué, which provided a road map for negotiations to establish a transitional governing body for Syria. The United States and Russia were unable to agree on whether Assad would be included in a future Syrian government, though, so this was left unspecified.
By early 2012 it was becoming clear that the [Syrian National Council](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Syrian-National-Council) (SNC), an opposition umbrella group formed in Istanbul in August 2011, was too narrow and too weakened by infighting to effectively represent the opposition. Much of the infighting was the result of crosscutting streams of support flowing to different rebel factions as donor countriesâ efforts to prioritize their own agendas and maximize their influence over the opposition created conflicts and prevented any single group from developing the stature to lead. After months of contentious diplomacy, in November Syrian opposition leaders announced the formation of a new coalition called the [National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces](https://www.britannica.com/topic/National-Coalition-for-Syrian-Revolutionary-and-Opposition-Forces). Over the next month the coalition received recognition from dozens of countries as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people. The divisions and rivalries that had plagued the Syrian National Council were nevertheless still present in the new organization.
Arab Spring Events
The summer and fall of 2012 saw a string of tactical sucesses for the rebels. Government troops were forced to withdraw from areas in the north and east, allowing the rebels to control significant territory for the first time. In July rebels attacked [Aleppo](https://www.britannica.com/place/Aleppo), Syriaâs largest city, establishing a foothold in the eastern part of the city. By early 2013, though, the military situation appeared to be approaching stalemate. Rebel fighters kept a firm hold on northern areas but were held back by deficiencies in equipment, weaponry, and organization. Meanwhile, government forces, weakened by defections, also seemed incapable of making large gains. Daily fighting continued in contested areas, pushing the civilian death toll higher and higher.
With no decisive outcome in sight, the international allies of the Syrian government and the rebels stepped up their support, raising the prospect of a regional proxy war. Efforts by [Turkey](https://www.britannica.com/place/Turkey), [Saudi Arabia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Saudi-Arabia), and [Qatar](https://www.britannica.com/place/Qatar) to fund and arm rebels became increasingly public in late 2012 and 2013. The United States, which had been reluctant to send weapons for fear of inadvertently arming [radical jihadists](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islamism#ref344561) who would someday turn against the West, eventually started a modest program to train and equip a few vetted rebel groups. The Syrian government continued to receive weapons from [Iran](https://www.britannica.com/place/Iran) and the Lebanese militant group [Hezbollah](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hezbollah). By late 2012 Hezbollah had also begun sending its own fighters into Syria to battle the rebels.
## Use of chemical weapons
There were new calls for international military action in Syria after suspected chemical weapons attacks in the suburbs of Damascus killed hundreds on August 21, 2013. The Syrian opposition accused pro-Assad forces of having carried out the attacks. Syrian officials denied having used chemical weapons and asserted that if such weapons had been used, rebel forces were to blame. While UN weapons inspectors collected evidence at the sites of the alleged chemical attacks, U.S., British, and French leaders denounced the use of chemical weapons and made it known that they were considering retaliatory strikes against the Assad regime. [Russia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Russia), China, and Iran spoke out against military action, and Assad vowed to fight what he described as Western aggression.
The prospect of international military intervention in Syria began to fade by the end of August, in part because it became evident that majorities in the [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States) and the [United Kingdom](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-Kingdom) were opposed to military action. A motion in the British Parliament to authorize strikes in Syria failed on August 29, and a similar vote in the U.S. Congress was postponed on September 10. Meanwhile, diplomacy took center stage, resulting in an agreement between Russia, Syria, and the United States on September 14 to place all of Syriaâs chemical weapons under international control. The agreement was carried out and all declared chemical weapons were removed from Syria by the agreementâs deadline of June 30, 2014.
## The rise of the Nusrah Front and ISIS
In 2013 Islamist militants began to take center stage as the non-Islamist factions faltered from exhaustion and infighting. The Nusrah Front (Jabhat al-NuáčŁrah), an [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda) affiliate operating in Syria, partnered with a variety of other opposition groups and was generally considered to be one of the most-effective fighting forces. Although the coalition was later transformed into [Hayat al-Tahrir al-Sham](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hayat-Tahrir-al-Sham) (HTS)âthe rebel group that led the successful overthrow of Assad in 2024âit was soon overshadowed in 2013 by a group entering the fray from Iraq: in April [Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abu-Bakr-al-Baghdadi), the leader of [al-Qaeda in Iraq](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda-in-Iraq), declared that he would combine his forces in Iraq with the Nusrah Front under the name [Islamic State in Iraq and Syria](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islamic-State-in-Iraq-and-the-Levant) (ISIS). The Nusrah Front rejected the merger, and the two groups ended up fighting with each other as ISIS began competing for dominance in eastern Syria, beginning with an area in the Euphrates valley centered on the city of [Al-Raqqah](https://www.britannica.com/place/Al-Raqqah) and expanding along the Iraq-Syria border.
## International intervention and the entrance of Russian forces
[Aleppo, Syria: injured boy](https://cdn.britannica.com/03/192303-050-E2D8E7E1/child-air-strike-Syria-Aleppo-August-2016.jpg)A child sitting in an ambulance after his home was destroyed by an air strike in Aleppo, Syria, August 2016.
ISISâs sudden advances in Iraq, which were accompanied by a steady stream of violent and provocative propaganda, added urgency to the international communityâs calls for action. On August 8 the United States launched air strikes in Iraq to prevent ISIS from advancing into the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq and to shield Christian and [YazÄ«dÄ«](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Yazidi) communities there. The strikes slowed the groupâs advance, but a series of videos showing ISIS fighters beheading Western aid workers and journalists amplified fears that the group posed a global threat. On September 23 the United States and a coalition of Arab states expanded the air campaign to strike ISIS targets in Syria.
In the summer of 2015, Russia began to take a more-active role in the conflict, deploying troops and military equipment to an air base near [Latakia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Latakia-Syria). In September Russia launched its first air strikes against targets in Syria. Russian officials originally claimed that the air strikes were targeting ISIS, but it quickly became clear that they were targeting mostly rebels fighting against Assad, with the intention of bolstering their ally.
After a short ceasefire between Russian and Syrian government forces and Western-backed rebels collapsed in September 2016, Russia and the Syrian government forces turned their focus to the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo, unleashing a fierce bombing campaign. Russian and Syrian forces made no attempt to avoid causing civilian casualties in their efforts to subdue the rebels; warplanes dropped indiscriminate munitions such as cluster bombs and incendiary bombs and targeted medical facilities, search and rescue teams, and aid workers. Those actions were condemned by human rights groups, but they continued unabated until the rebels in Aleppo collapsed in December.
By 2016 ISIS, which only a few years earlier had appeared to be nearly unstoppable in northern and eastern Syria, was beginning to collapse under the strain of its simultaneous confrontations with three rival coalitionsâKurdish forces and their American allies, pro-Assad Syrian forces supported by Iran and Russia, and a Turkish-backed coalition of rebel groups. In the north, Kurdish and Turkish-supported forces gradually consolidated their hold on the areas along the Turkish border, depriving ISIS of a strategically important territory. Meanwhile, an escalating U.S.-led air campaign weakened ISISâs grip on key strongholds. ISISâs ideological rivals, including the [Nusrah Front](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Nusrah-Front-to-Protect-the-Levant) led by [Abu Mohammad al-Jolani](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ahmed-al-Sharaa) (Golani; byname of Ahmed al-Sharaa), merged into [Hayat Tahrir al-Sham](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hayat-Tahrir-al-Sham) (HTS) and together fought ISIS in Idlib, capturing territory held by ISIS in the area. In June 2017 the mostly Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) launched an assault on Al-Raqqah, ISISâs de facto capital in Syria, with support from U.S. air power and special forces. In October the SDF announced that Al-Raqqah had been cleared of ISIS forces. In the east, Assadâs forces continued to pressure ISIS, forcing them out of Deir al-Zour in November 2017. Meanwhile, that same month, HTS announced the creation of what it called the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG) to govern Idlib; the SSGâs experience governing Idlib helped lay the foundation for HTS-led governance of Syria after the overthrow of Assad in 2024.
While government forces continued to gain ground, Western governments increasingly intervened in the conflict. After a chemical weapons attack was carried out in KhÄn ShaykhĆ«n in April 2017, the United States barraged Shayrat air base near Homs with 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles. A year later, after the Syrian government used chemical weapons in Douma, U.S., British, and French forces launched more than 100 strikes targeting chemical weapons facilities near Damascus and Homs.
Israel targeted the Iranian military in Syria in 2018. After Iran shelled the [Golan Heights](https://www.britannica.com/place/Golan-Heights) in response, Israel launched its heaviest barrage in Syria since the civil war began. Dozens of Iranian military sites were targeted, and Israel claimed to have destroyed nearly all of Iranâs military infrastructure in Syria.
## Assad government restores control over most of Syria
In June 2018, having solidified their hold on the areas around Damascus and Homs, Syrian government forces began a campaign to recapture rebel-held territories in the southwest province of Daraa, later expanding into [Quneitra](https://www.britannica.com/place/al-Qunaytirah) province. As the success of the government operation became clear, a deal was brokered with the help of Russia that allowed rebels safe passage to the rebel-held province of [Idlib](https://www.britannica.com/place/Idlib) in the north in exchange for their surrender in southwest of the country.
Idlib was the last remaining region of the country that the rebels held, and the belligerents all began to brace themselves for an imminent clash. Aside from the governmentâs ability to now focus its military on recapturing just one region, and its history using chemical weapons, Turkeyâs military presence in support of the rebels helped guarantee that any government offensive would be met by a tough fight. Both Turkey and the Syrian government began to amass troops along the borders; Turkey reinforced its military within the province, while Syrian and Russian warplanes bombarded border towns.
Russia and Turkey attempted to de-escalate the situation by agreeing to and implementing a buffer zone between rebel and government forces. The buffer zone required all heavy weaponry and fighters to retreat from an area about 9 to 12 miles (15 to 20 km) wide. It was unclear at the time whether all parties would observe the deal, a top-down agreement. The Syrian government and mainstream rebel groups, such as the Free Syrian Army, quickly embraced the buffer zone agreement. Groups sympathetic to al-Qaedaâs ideology, such as HTS, remained wild cards, though they appeared to signal that they would comply. They quietly pulled heavy weaponry from the buffer zone, though many fighters appeared to remain past the October 15 deadline.
As part of the agreement, Turkey was responsible for preventing the most radical groups, such as HTS, to prosper in the region. HTS, however, launched an offensive against other rebel groups in January 2019 and soon became the dominant force in Idlib. In April Syrian forces crossed the buffer zone and began an offensive in Idlib with the help of Russian air strikes. They captured territory before a counteroffensive launched in June was able to push the battle back into government-controlled areas.
In October the conflict expanded eastward. Turkey launched an offensive into Syriaâs Kurdish-held northeast region, days after the United States announced that it would not stand in the way. The country aimed to destabilize Kurdish separatists in Syria who were allies of the [Kurdistan Workersâ Party](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kurdistan-Workers-Party) (PKK) in Turkey and to make a safe zone in the region for the repatriation of Syrian refugees in Turkey. Kurdish forces quickly forged a deal with Assad for assistance, allowing government forces to re-enter the region for the first time since 2012.
Although Turkey had largely steered clear of direct confrontation with the Syrian government throughout the conflict, the Syrian government offensive in Idlib, backed by Russian air strikes, sometimes led to Turkish casualties and retaliation. In late February 2020 the conflict escalated briefly after dozens of Turkish soldiers were killed in an air strike and Turkish forces retaliated directly against the Syrian army. The confrontation soon ended, however, after a general ceasefire was negotiated by Turkey and Russia a week later. In 2023, as the war seemed to settle down, the [Arab League](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Arab-League) reinstated Syriaâs membership in the organization.
## Assad overthrown and the creation of a new government
A new rebel offensive took place in 2024, however, after international support for government forces was considerably weakened. Assistance from Russia was already mitigated by its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in the [Russia-Ukraine War](https://www.britannica.com/event/Russia-Ukraine-War). Iran, another important ally for the government, suffered setbacks in 2024 as the [Israel-Hamas War](https://www.britannica.com/event/Israel-Hamas-War) brought it into conflict with Israel. Israeli strikes resulted in significant blows to Iranâs strategic assets and allies in the region (including, notably, inside Syria). [Hezbollah](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hezbollah) in particularâa key component in Assadâs fight against the rebelsâwas diminished by Israeli bombardment of [Lebanon](https://www.britannica.com/place/Lebanon) lasting from September to November.
In October Hezbollah pulled its fighters back from Syria as it defended its front lines against a ground invasion, and, by the end of the fighting, more than half a million Syrian refugees in Lebanon had fled back into Syria. When a ceasefire deal was announced between Israel and Hezbollah on November 26, Hezbollah had agreed to considerable concessions and had limited capacity to resume combat outside Lebanon. The next day HTS began advancing in the provinces of Idlib and Aleppo. On November 29 HTS fighters entered [Aleppo](https://www.britannica.com/place/Aleppo)âs city center and forced government forces to withdraw from the city. Russian jets responded the next day with air strikes against HTS, but HTS managed to extend its advance to Hama within a week. [Daraa](https://www.britannica.com/place/Daraa) and [Homs](https://www.britannica.com/place/Homs) were captured on December 7, effectively isolating Damascus and cutting it off from bases and ports that would allow the Syrian army to reinforce and resupply Damascusâs defenses. That same day rebel forces entered Damascus and in the overnight hours took control. Assad was found to have already fled; rebel forces and Assadâs prime minister attempted to arrange a stable transfer of power in order to keep government institutions in tact.
[Leading a revolutionary offensive](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/265101-050-1E16FC50/Hayat-Tahrir-al-sham-leader-Abu-Mohammad-al-Golani-Jolani-speech-Umayyad-Mosquie-Damascus-Syria-December-8-2024.jpg)Ahmed al-Sharaa (previously known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al-Jolani) speaking at the landmark Great Mosque of Damascus after ousting Syrian Pres. Bashar al-Assad from power on December 8, 2024.
On December 10 HTS announced Mohammed al-Bashir, the head of the SSG in Idlib, would take over as interim prime minister until March and that government services would continue as usual. [Ahmed al-Sharaa](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ahmed-al-Sharaa), the leader of HTS and the de facto leader of the interim government, was formally proclaimed interim president in January. Sharaa indicated his intention for a careful and inclusive constitutional process that would take place over the span of several years and he called for all armed factions, including HTS, to dissolve in favor of a common government force. But it was unclear to what extent the members of HTS had shed their former affiliation with al-Qaedaâs [jihadist](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islamism#ref344561) ideology, especially as the interim government quickly moved to inject certain conservative norms into schools and mosques. In early Marchâas Bashir and the interim government remained in power with an uncertain timeline for elections or a new constitutionâforces loyal to the interim government launched a crackdown against supporters of the Assad regime in predominantly Alawite areas of western Syria. More than 1,000 people, mostly civilians, were killed by government forces in the span of four days.
Meanwhile, the interim government reached an agreement with the SDF to integrate the Kurdish-led militia into the new government in exchange for guarantees that [Kurds](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kurd) would enjoy full rights as equal citizens in the new Syria. The agreement came days after [Abdullah Ăcalan](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abdullah-Ocalan), a jailed Kurdish leader in Turkey, called on his militant organization the [Kurdistan Workersâ Party](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kurdistan-Workers-Party) (PKK) to disarm and disband, prompting the PKK to declare a ceasefire with the Turkish government. |
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