Levant in January 2026: the most important developments in society
In the Levant in January 2026, the situation of Syria's Kurds was the main social story. After deadly clashes in Aleppo, Kurds protested expulsions from neighbourhoods there on 13 January, and by 16 January hundreds were fleeing to government-held areas ahead of a possible attack on Kurdish forces. The same day, President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued a decree granting Kurdish Syrians citizenship and language rights for the first time, declaring Kurdish a national language and recognising the Nowruz festival. On 19 January, streets in Raqqa saw calls for a united Syria after the end of Kurdish-led rule there.
The ceasefire with the SDF was due to expire around 24 January and was extended. On 25 January Syria opened a humanitarian corridor to the Kurdish town of Kobane. Residents there still described a siege and shortages, the number of refugees in Kurdish areas was put at 350,000, and on 31 January an NGO and an MP said Turkey blocked an aid convoy to the town. The fate of missing persons after prison releases by the SDF also drew attention.
In Lebanon, public sector workers struck for higher wages, and the protests intensified by 29 January. The country's Mufti called for a state monopoly on weapons, and Palestinians in Lebanon reacted to UNRWA removing Palestine from its curriculum.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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