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Trump Names Tom Barrack as Special Presidential Envoy to Syria, Iraq

US President Donald Trump meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House in Washington DC, November 10, 2025 (AFP) 
US President Donald Trump meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House in Washington DC, November 10, 2025 (AFP) 
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Trump Names Tom Barrack as Special Presidential Envoy to Syria, Iraq

US President Donald Trump meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House in Washington DC, November 10, 2025 (AFP) 
US President Donald Trump meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House in Washington DC, November 10, 2025 (AFP) 

US President Donald Trump announced on Sunday the appointment of Tom Barrack as special presidential envoy to Syria and Iraq.

The new designation, which comes following the expiration of Barrack’s formal mandate, reflects the administration’s push to phase in full diplomatic relations with Damascus.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote, “I am pleased to announce that United States Ambassador to Türkiye, Tom Barrack, who has done an outstanding job, will be named Special Presidential Envoy to Syria and, likewise, Special Presidential Envoy to Iraq.”

He noted that the appointment comes as the US government continues to strengthen its strategic cooperation and as relations with the Syrian and Iraqi governments continue to grow.

Trump also said the envoy will continue his duties as ambassador to Türkiye and operate with the full support of the US State Department.

Trump then expressed appreciation for Barrack’s efforts and his readiness to serve his country, saying: “We greatly appreciate the work that Tom Barrack has done, and his continued willingness to serve our Country. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

On Saturday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio had announced the end of Thomas Barrack’s term as US special envoy to Syria.

Rubio said in a post on X that “Ambassador Tom Barrak has played an invaluable role as our Special Envoy to Syria.”

He added, “While that title is expiring, he will continue to play a leading role for the Trump Administration in both Syria and Iraq, where his expertise, relationships, and understanding of the America First agenda will continue to deliver wins on behalf of our great country.”

Rubio did not provide details on the nature of Barrack’s new role or the person who will take over his duties, suggesting to followers that the US administration has terminated Barrack's duties as US special envoy to Syria.

Following a meeting in Damascus with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa two weeks ago, Barrack said Syria had achieved “remarkable progress” and become “a laboratory for a new regional alignment” based on diplomacy.

“Just over a year ago, President Donald Trump’s visionary meeting with President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia opened a new chapter,” Barrack wrote, referring to the first meeting between the two leaders in Riyadh in May 2025.

He added that Trump had announced at the time the lifting of US sanctions “to give Syria a chance at greatness”, describing the move as “a bold and hopeful gesture for Syria and the region.”

“The opportunities ahead promise exponential advancement for the Syrian people and lasting stability,” Barrack said.

He then noted that, “Syria is now a laboratory for a new regional alignment of diplomacy, integration and hope for the entire region.”

Last Thursday, Barrack considered the discovery and securing of undeclared chemical weapons dating back to the Assad regime era a “significant milestone” in the process of building a new Syria and strengthening international security.

In a post on X, he said, “Thanks to the courageous work carried out by the Syrian authorities and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, with the support of President Donald Trump and international partners, another step has been taken toward permanently ending Syria’s brutal chemical weapons legacy.”

Barrack held a meeting with Sharaa last April in Antalya, Türkiye, on the sidelines of the fifth Antalya Diplomacy Forum.

Syria’s news agency, SANA, said at the time that talks during the meeting dealt with the latest regional developments, means of enhancing cooperation between the two countries in a way that boosts security and peace in the region.

 

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Arab World

Iraqi Investigation Accuses Armed Factions of Manipulating Airport Contracts

 Baghdad International Airport (Archive – Reuters) 
 Baghdad International Airport (Archive – Reuters) 
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Iraqi Investigation Accuses Armed Factions of Manipulating Airport Contracts

 Baghdad International Airport (Archive – Reuters) 
 Baghdad International Airport (Archive – Reuters) 

An Iraqi official source has disclosed suspected irregularities in airport contracts that may have benefited armed groups operating outside the law.

Separately, Kataib Hezbollah accused authorities in Baghdad of selling oil at discounted prices, while an informed source said Iraq had been forced to do so because of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and its lack of an oil tanker fleet.

The official source told the Iraqi News Agency (INA) on Wednesday that the Federal Commission of Integrity was scrutinizing contracts involving the Ministry of Transport and airports and had detected suspected manipulation linked to the financing of armed groups.

Some contracts had been manipulated “for the economic benefit of armed groups operating outside the law,” the source added.

The official did not identify the groups involved, explain the nature of the alleged manipulation or specify how much money was suspected of being directed to them.

The investigation comes amid growing questions about the relationship between the political influence of armed factions and their economic interests, as pressure continues on the Iraqi government to bring all weapons under state control.

The controversy over transport and airport contracts in Iraq recalls the experience of Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport, where Hezbollah’s influence within the airport’s security and administrative institutions has raised questions about the state’s ability to maintain effective oversight of vital facilities.

In Iraq, the influence of armed factions extends beyond their military presence. Groups linked to them hold political roles and positions within state institutions, while investigations into government contracts have raised questions about the extent to which these factions benefit from state resources and public spending.

Escalation Over State Control of Weapons

The disclosure of the investigation came amid escalating tensions between Iraq’s Kataib Hezbollah and the government and the Coordination Framework. The group is demanding the release of a draft agreement that it says the so-called “Islamic Resistance” reached with a Framework committee on placing weapons under state control.

An account on X under the name Abu Mujahid al-Assaf, whose holder identifies himself as a security official in Kataib Hezbollah, said the armed factions were still awaiting a copy of the agreement. He added that they had suspended all military operations inside Iraq until further notice.

Baghdad authorities had not previously announced receiving a copy of any agreement concluded by the factions. However, spokespeople for Shiite parties had disclosed that the groups were negotiating with a four-member committee from the Coordination Framework to reach an agreement on their weapons.

Al-Assaf criticized the government’s performance, accusing it of making promises it had failed to fulfill.

He also questioned oil sales contracts with a regional company, asking whether Coordination Framework members approved of selling oil at discounted prices and sharing the profits.

He claimed the profits exceeded 4.5 trillion Iraqi dinars a month, without providing details or evidence to support the figure. No comment could be obtained from the country’s relevant energy authorities.

An informed political source, however, explained that Iraq was selling oil shipments at discounted prices because of “the shipping crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, the transport and transit risks borne by buyers, and the pressure facing the country because it does not have its own tanker fleet.”

The escalation followed the failure to convene a regular Coordination Framework meeting on Sunday evening because several members were absent, amid continuing disagreements over the allocation of positions and ministerial portfolios in PM Ali al-Zaidi’s government.

Political researcher Falah al-Mishal attributed Kataib Hezbollah’s escalation to several factors, including the Coordination Framework’s approval of measures to close border crossings with Iran, pressure to bring factional weapons under state control, and objections to certain government foreign policy measures.

Al-Mishal told Asharq Al-Awsat that Iraq’s efforts to develop relations with Syria and Jordan, expand ties with the Arab world and honor its agreements with the United States had led Kataib Hezbollah to feel that the Coordination Framework, once its ally, had abandoned its previous commitments and pledges.

Divisions Within the Shiite Camp

Tensions have not been confined to Kataib Hezbollah. Asaib Ahl al-Haq, led by Qais al-Khazali, also criticized armed factions refusing to surrender their weapons, without naming them.

Ahmed al-Moussawi, a senior Asaib Ahl al-Haq figure and member of parliament, told the movement’s Al-Ahd television channel that these factions would produce nothing more than “a resistance with 10 rockets.”

Al-Moussawi questioned whom the factions were resisting, adding that those refusing to surrender their weapons were attacking Asaib Ahl al-Haq but were, in his words, “not worth responding to.”

The exchange of criticism reflects widening divisions within the Shiite political camp, at a time when the Coordination Framework had been expected to consolidate its position following the completion of the government formation process.

Instead, competition over positions and ministerial portfolios, coupled with conflicting interests among its members, has reignited disputes within the alliance and raised questions about its ability to coordinate the positions of armed factions.

Despite the escalating exchanges, security and political affairs expert Fadel Abu Ragheef does not necessarily believe efforts to bring weapons under state control are losing momentum.

Abu Ragheef told Asharq Al-Awsat that the issue “remains on the table as long as there is a final deadline extending into next year.”

He added that “US statements on bringing weapons under state control are increasing pressure on the Iraqi public and putting the government in a difficult position.”

Abu Ragheef also pointed to “cooperation from some factions on this issue, including parties that had previously refused to cooperate,” but warned that the outbreak of a regional war could change the situation.

Arab World

Charity Kitchen Closures Threaten Thousands of Families with Hunger in Khartoum

Women line up ahead of a food distribution (Asharq Al-Awsat). 
Women line up ahead of a food distribution (Asharq Al-Awsat). 
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Charity Kitchen Closures Threaten Thousands of Families with Hunger in Khartoum

Women line up ahead of a food distribution (Asharq Al-Awsat). 
Women line up ahead of a food distribution (Asharq Al-Awsat). 

Thousands of displaced people in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, are struggling to secure a daily meal as dozens of charity kitchens have closed or scaled back operations because of funding shortages, leaving growing numbers of families at risk of hunger.

Al-Sadiq Siddiq, who supervises a charity kitchen in Omdurman, said dwindling donations had forced organizers to reduce the number of meals provided to families.

“We are facing growing difficulties because of a shortage of financial support from donors and benefactors,” he said, warning that conditions were deteriorating as hunger spread among poor and vulnerable communities.

The scramble for food had reached distressing levels, he added, with some people resorting to physical fights over portions of beans or lentils.

“These conditions are pushing more families into hunger and leaving them unable to secure even the minimum amount of food they need,” he stated.

One Meal a Day

Abbas Mahjoub, a supervisor at a charity kitchen in the East Nile area, noted that the facility had served more than 800 families before it closed. Many residents now survive on a single meal a day, unable to meet their basic food needs.

Al-Bukhari Ishaq, who supervised a kitchen in eastern Al-Jarif, said it had shut down more than eight months ago after funding from the East Nile Emergency Response Room, which provided grants to charity kitchens, declined.

Ishaq told Asharq Al-Awsat that dwindling donations and reduced contributions from aid organizations, including the World Food Program (WFP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), had severely undermined the kitchen’s operations.

The facility had provided daily meals to around 400 families, he explained, and its closure deprived hundreds of households of an essential source of food amid worsening living conditions.

Altouma al-Jak, who supports a family of nine, told Asharq Al-Awsat that her grandchildren had dropped out of school because she could no longer afford breakfast, transportation or school supplies, including clothes, shoes, books and notebooks.

“Sometimes days go by when my children don’t have enough to eat,” she said sadly.

Her family had depended on a charity kitchen for food, and its closure amounted to “a slow death,” she explained, particularly as soaring prices had put basic food supplies beyond the reach of many households.

She expressed hope that the war would end and peace would return to Sudan, allowing people to live with dignity.

Hunger Deepens

Salwa Abdullah Adam lost her husband during the war when he was struck by a shell, leaving her solely responsible for seven children, the youngest a nine-month-old baby.

Standing in a long line outside a charity kitchen to collect a simple meal for her children, she described the mounting hardship.

“Life is getting harder day by day,” she remarked.

Her children go to school without spending money and return home to eat whatever corn porridge is available, while the family struggles to meet their daily needs.

Healthcare is another challenge. Adam said charitable doctors sometimes help her obtain medicines for her children from pharmacies, but when adults fall ill, they have little choice but to endure their illnesses and take painkillers.

A Lifeline for Families

Ali Abdullah Youssef faces similar difficulties to other families relying on charity kitchens, locally known as takaya, for their only daily meal.

“Conditions are extremely difficult. Without this charity kitchen, we wouldn’t be able to get food,” he said.

He warned that the closure of such kitchens would leave his family in a desperate situation, with no source of income and living costs continuing to rise.

Accounts from beneficiaries illustrate the hardship caused by the closures, particularly among families that have lost their livelihoods and now depend on meals distributed by charitable initiatives.

The struggle to obtain food comes amid mounting international warnings over Sudan’s worsening food crisis.

On October 26, dozens of countries, including the United States and major European nations, expressed concern over the continued deterioration of food security in Sudan and called on both parties to the conflict to remove all obstacles to humanitarian aid deliveries.

In June, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) reported that approximately 5.1 million people in Sudan were facing acute hunger.

The crisis has been compounded by the war that erupted in 2023, which has damaged the agricultural sector and hampered farmers’ ability to harvest their crops, alongside a recent drought.

Arab World

Gaza Turns Rubble into Power with Homemade Wind Turbines

In war-ravaged Gaza, where shortages are constant, every watt counts. Eyad BABA / AFP
In war-ravaged Gaza, where shortages are constant, every watt counts. Eyad BABA / AFP
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Gaza Turns Rubble into Power with Homemade Wind Turbines

In war-ravaged Gaza, where shortages are constant, every watt counts. Eyad BABA / AFP
In war-ravaged Gaza, where shortages are constant, every watt counts. Eyad BABA / AFP

Above a maze of tents in a crowded displacement camp in Gaza, homemade wind turbines made from scrap metal and salvaged debris spin in the sea breeze, bringing electricity to struggling Palestinians.

In the southern Khan Yunis camp, Kamal Al-Dabary, a former engineering student, has put his skills to work for families who, like most Gazans, live in displacement with no direct access to the tiny territory's shattered power grid.

According to the World Bank, more than 90 percent of Gaza's power generation and distribution capacity was destroyed in April 2026, much of it in Israeli strikes that devastated homes and infrastructure, AFP reported.

Sitting on the ground, Dabary tinkered with electrical wires, metal parts and basic tools on a plastic table.

After carefully twisting cables together and testing them with a multimeter, a small bulb flickered on, then another, signaling that the current was flowing.

"When solar panels were still relatively affordable, we bought one and kept moving it around to follow the sun," the 60-year-old, displaced by the fighting between Israel and Hamas, told AFP.

The war was triggered by the Palestinian movement's deadly October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

But after three years of war, prices have soared as aid and commercial supplies trickled into Gaza through crossings tightly controlled by Israel.

A single solar panel now costs at least 15,000 shekels (nearly $5,000), putting it out of reach for most Gazans, Dabary said.

- 'Changed everything' -

"We haven't had work or income for three years," he added.

"That's when the idea of a wind turbine came to mind. Why not harness the wind? So we salvaged parts from the rubble."

The turbines are built from scooter motors and old water tanks cut into blades.

As the wind turns the blades, they drive a motor that generates electricity. The power then passes through circuits assembled from parts recovered from destroyed homes before being stored in batteries.

This provides enough electricity to charge phones and run lights, fans and even electric razors, small comforts that have become a luxury for families still living in tents and shelters.

Nearly all of Gaza's residents were displaced at least once during the war, and most now live in a small area still under Hamas rule, while Israel controls more than 60 percent of the territory along its perimeter.

"They help us hold on... until God delivers us from this ordeal and we can return home," said Dabary, known locally as Abu Ayman.

The output remains modest. But in a camp where shortages are constant, every watt counts.

The system "has changed everything," said 50-year-old Saleh ben Hasan.

With healthcare and medication hard to access in Gaza, the power can also help keep medical equipment running.

"If a child needs a nebulizer (a device used to inhale medicine) in the middle of the night, who else can we turn to?" he said.

"Electricity is needed... So we turn to our brother Abu Ayman."