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Sharaa Says Working to Steer Syria Clear of Any Conflict

This handout photograph released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (2nd-R) attending the early morning prayers for Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in Damascus on March 20, 2026. (SANA/AFP)
This handout photograph released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (2nd-R) attending the early morning prayers for Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in Damascus on March 20, 2026. (SANA/AFP)
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Sharaa Says Working to Steer Syria Clear of Any Conflict

This handout photograph released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (2nd-R) attending the early morning prayers for Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in Damascus on March 20, 2026. (SANA/AFP)
This handout photograph released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (2nd-R) attending the early morning prayers for Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in Damascus on March 20, 2026. (SANA/AFP)

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa stressed on Friday that he was working on steering the country clear of the war in the Middle East.

“We are taking steps very carefully and working on keeping Syria out of any conflict,” he said after Eid al-Fitr prayers in Damascus.

“We must remember that Syria had for 15 years been the arena for conflicts. Today, it is on good terms with all neighboring countries in the region, as well as countries around the world. At the same time, we stand in full solidarity with Arab countries,” he added.

Syria has transformed from an arena of conflict to one that can influence stability and security on the internal scene, as well as in the region, he went on to say.

The conflict in the Middle East erupted on February 28 after the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran. Iran in turn retaliated by launching attacks against Israel and American interests and embassies, and oil installations in the Gulf.

Lebanon was dragged into the war on March 2 when Hezbollah started firing rockets at Israel in retaliation to the killing of Irania supreme leader Ali Khamenei at the beginning of the conflict.

Syria has so far avoided being dragged into the war, but on Friday Israel's military said it had struck Syrian army camps in response to what it called attacks against the Druze community in the southern Sweida province.

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Arab World

Trump’s Peace Board Hands Hamas Disarmament Proposal, Sources Say

Displaced Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr prayers amid the rubble of destroyed buildings in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, 20 March 2026. (EPA)
Displaced Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr prayers amid the rubble of destroyed buildings in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, 20 March 2026. (EPA)
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Trump’s Peace Board Hands Hamas Disarmament Proposal, Sources Say

Displaced Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr prayers amid the rubble of destroyed buildings in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, 20 March 2026. (EPA)
Displaced Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr prayers amid the rubble of destroyed buildings in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, 20 March 2026. (EPA)

Donald Trump's Board of Peace has presented Hamas with a written proposal on how it could lay down its weapons, two sources said, a step the Palestinian movement has thus far refused to take as the US president pushes on with his plan for Gaza's future.

The proposal, first reported by NPR, was submitted to Hamas during meetings in Cairo over the past week, one of the sources said.

The talks were attended by Nickolay Mladenov and Aryeh Lightstone, the two sources familiar with the matter said.

Mladenov is the Trump-appointed Board of Peace envoy to Gaza. Lightstone is a US aide to Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff.

Trump's Gaza plan, to which ‌Israel and ‌Hamas agreed in October, sees Israeli troops withdrawing from Gaza and reconstruction starting ‌as ⁠Hamas lays down ⁠its weapons.

Mladenov on Thursday said that serious efforts were underway to bring relief to war-torn Gaza, with a framework agreed by the mediators that could advance reconstruction in the enclave, much of which lies in ruins.

"It is now on the table. It requires one clear choice: full decommissioning by Hamas and every armed group, with no exceptions and no carve-outs. In this season of hope, may those responsible make the right choice for the Palestinian people," Mladenov said on X in a ⁠post for the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr.

Representatives of Hamas were not immediately ‌available for comment on Saturday, the second day of ‌the holiday. Talks on disarmament had been placed on hold at the start of the US-Israeli war on ‌Iran which began on February 28.

AMNESTY OFFER MAY BE ON THE TABLE

US officials have ‌said that Iran-backed Hamas could be offered amnesty in any deal under which they agree to lay down any heavy weaponry and light arms including rifles.

Sources close to Hamas say the group would likely refuse to give up their rifles for fear of attacks by rival militias in Gaza, some of which have ‌backing from Israel. Hamas and its rivals have staged deadly attacks on one another since the October ceasefire.

One of the sources said much ⁠would depend on ⁠what is acceptable to Israel, which demands the group’s complete disarmament.

Some of Hamas' prominent officials have outright rejected any disarmament over the past few months.

Israel has shown no sign of withdrawing its troops who are in control of around half of Gaza's territory, with Hamas keeping a firm grip on the other half of the enclave and its two million population, most of which has been rendered homeless by two years of devastating war.

The source said that amnesty and targeted investments in Gaza were being offered as incentives for Hamas, but said that it was unclear whether the Board of Peace would have funds to pay for it.

Arab World

Drone Attack Against Iraqi Intelligence Services in Baghdad

Security personnel stand guard during a funeral procession for members of Iraq's PMF, who were killed in an attack in al-Qaim province near the Syria border the previous evening, in Baghdad on March 17, 2026. (AFP)
Security personnel stand guard during a funeral procession for members of Iraq's PMF, who were killed in an attack in al-Qaim province near the Syria border the previous evening, in Baghdad on March 17, 2026. (AFP)
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Drone Attack Against Iraqi Intelligence Services in Baghdad

Security personnel stand guard during a funeral procession for members of Iraq's PMF, who were killed in an attack in al-Qaim province near the Syria border the previous evening, in Baghdad on March 17, 2026. (AFP)
Security personnel stand guard during a funeral procession for members of Iraq's PMF, who were killed in an attack in al-Qaim province near the Syria border the previous evening, in Baghdad on March 17, 2026. (AFP)

A drone attack targeted Iraqi intelligence services in an upscale residential neighborhood in central Baghdad on Saturday morning, a senior security official said.

"A drone targeted the headquarters of the Iraqi National Intelligence Service in the Mansour district" at around 10:00 am local time (0700 GMT), General Saad Maan, head of the Iraqi government's security media unit, said in a brief statement.

An Iraqi security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said earlier the attack targeted a "telecommunications building" with the National Intelligence Service, which cooperates with US advisors in Iraq as part of an international anti-jihadist coalition.

Another drone, filming the operation, crashed into a private members sports club popular with Iraqi elite and foreign diplomats, according to the same source.

Iraq has been unwillingly drawn into the regional conflict triggered by the US-Israel attack on its neighbor Iran on February 28.

Strikes have targeted Iran-backed groups, which in turn have claimed near-daily attacks on US interests, mostly in Iraq but also across the wider region.

A fighter from the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) was killed late Friday in a strike on a military airfield in northern Iraq. The group blamed the attack on the US and Israel.

On Thursday, the Pentagon acknowledged for the first time that combat helicopters had carried out strikes against pro-Iran armed groups in Iraq during the latest conflict.

Overnight from Friday to Saturday, at least three drone attacks targeted a US diplomatic and logistics hub that houses US military personnel at Baghdad International Airport, according to two security officials.

One of the officials said that a fire broke out near the base following the third attack.

Arab World

Burhan Rejects Ceasefire Before RSF Surrender as Drone Strike Hits Power Station in Northern Sudan

Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan attends a group iftar with members of the community police in the final days of Ramadan. (Sudanese Armed Forces – Facebook).
Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan attends a group iftar with members of the community police in the final days of Ramadan. (Sudanese Armed Forces – Facebook).
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Burhan Rejects Ceasefire Before RSF Surrender as Drone Strike Hits Power Station in Northern Sudan

Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan attends a group iftar with members of the community police in the final days of Ramadan. (Sudanese Armed Forces – Facebook).
Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan attends a group iftar with members of the community police in the final days of Ramadan. (Sudanese Armed Forces – Facebook).

A drone attack blamed on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) struck the town of Al-Dabba in northern Sudan, targeting a power station and the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Dongola, officials said Friday. The strike cut electricity to the town and left at least three people injured.

The attack came hours after Sudan’s army chief and head of the Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan reiterated his rejection of any ceasefire and vowed to continue fighting until the RSF surrenders.

In an Eid al-Fitr address on Thursday evening, al-Burhan said there would be “no truce” unless the RSF withdrew and regrouped under a comprehensive peace plan leading to a permanent settlement, with no armed actors remaining outside state control.

He added that Sudan’s leadership remained open to peace initiatives that meet security requirements and prevent a return to war.

Al-Burhan accused the RSF of committing war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity, and said any future political process must dismantle the group’s role in Sudan.

He also pledged to “purge” the country of what he described as the “Dagalo militia,” referring to RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti, and to rebuild state institutions while advancing civilian governance and peaceful transfer of power.

Al-Burhan last year proposed a UN-backed initiative requiring RSF forces to withdraw to agreed locations in Darfur before negotiations begin. The proposal ran parallel to a plan by the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt calling for a three-month humanitarian truce and a transition to a civilian-led government.

Shortly after his speech, RSF drones struck Al-Dabba, a strategic town in Northern State along the Nile. Local official Mohamed Saber, head of the area’s security committee, said the attack took place early Friday, the first day of Eid al-Fitr, and targeted civilian infrastructure, including the engineering faculty.

He said three people were wounded but did not disclose their condition, accusing the RSF of deliberately targeting civilian sites “to spread fear among unarmed residents.”

According to the official, Sudanese army air defenses intercepted some of the drones, and military and allied forces remain on alert to repel further attacks.

The RSF did not immediately comment on the strike. It has previously said its drones target military positions or civilian sites used by the army and its allies.

Friday’s attack was not the first on Al-Dabba. In October 2025, RSF drones struck the town, killing five people and injuring others.

Al-Dabba, home to tens of thousands, is a key commercial and agricultural hub linking northern, western and eastern Sudan.