Syrian Civil War

The Syrian Civil War (Arabic: الحرب الأهلية السورية) is an armed conflict that began in March 2011. It started from public demonstrations against the rule of Bashar al-Assad, before turning into a war between government forces and numerous armed groups. Over the course of 13 years, foreign states and non-state groups became involved. The main phase of the conflict ended on 8 December 2024, when opposition groups led by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) took control of Damascus and Assad fled the country.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) stated in 2021 that it had a list of 350,209 identified people killed in Syria between March 2011 and March 2021, and noted that this figure was lower than the actual toll. A report published in 2022 estimated that 306,887 civilians had been killed during the same period. Independent monitoring groups have presented higher figures. Displacement, meanwhile, became the largest in the world.

Beginning and transition to armed conflict

The 2011 demonstrations began in the city of Daraa (in the south) before spreading to major cities. The harsh security response led defectors from government forces to form armed groups, known as the Free Syrian Army. By 2012 the fighting had reached Aleppo and parts of Damascus. In the following years, radical religious groups emerged, including the Islamic State (ISIS), which by 2014 had seized Raqqa and parts of the east by force. The war divided the country into areas controlled by the government, the opposition, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and Turkey together with groups it supported.

Foreign intervention and the chemical weapons issue

Russia, Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah supported the Assad government, while Turkey, Gulf states and the United States provided varying support to opposition groups. A US-led coalition began airstrikes against ISIS in 2014, working with the SDF on the ground. A chemical attack in Ghouta in August 2013 led the Security Council to unanimously adopt Resolution 2118 on 27 September 2013, ordering Syria to declare and destroy its chemical weapons under supervision. A joint OPCW-UN mission was tasked with this effort; in 2025, UN agencies said there was new cooperation from the new administration, but gaps and unresolved questions remained.

Displacement and the humanitarian situation

Syria's situation is the largest displacement crisis in the world. UNHCR stated that 7.4 million people were internally displaced within the country, while 4.5 million refugees were in neighboring countries, including an estimated 2.5 million in Turkey. Following the political change of December 2024, returns increased: in 2024 UNHCR confirmed that more than 476,000 refugees and 376,000 internally displaced people had returned to their homes, a figure far higher than in previous years. UNHCR also warned that returnees face destroyed homes, limited services and lack of employment.

December 2024 and the transitional phase

On 27 November 2024, opposition groups led by HTS launched a rapid offensive starting from the northwest. In less than two weeks they had taken Aleppo, Hama and Homs, and on 8 December entered Damascus. Bashar al-Assad fled to Russia, ending the rule of the Assad family that had begun in the 1970s. In January 2025, Ahmed al-Sharaa was declared transitional president; on 13 March 2025 a Constitutional Declaration establishing a five-year transitional period took effect; on 29 March 2025 a transitional government was formed. On 10 March 2025, al-Sharaa and SDF commander Mazloum Abdi signed an agreement to integrate the institutions of the northeast with the central government, though implementation of the agreement has been delayed.

The transitional phase has seen severe violence affecting particular communities. In March 2025, violence on the western coast killed up to 1,400 people, most of them civilians, many of whom were Alawites. The UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria, in a report published in August 2025, said the acts were widespread and systematic, including killings, torture, looting and arson of homes, which displaced tens of thousands of people. Human rights organizations have also documented killings based on identity (religious affiliation) and cases of missing persons.