On WBAL News Now at 6 ABC News correspondent Jordana Miller in Jerusalem talks about President Trump's meeting with the  new leader of Syria. 

WBAL News Now in Depth Trump Meets With Syrian Leader

Stuart J. Hooper discusses U.S. foreign policy and the current global situation. He examines whether President Trump still has some promise left in him and implores the MAGA crowd to hold the president's feet to the fire. We run through global flashpoints including Trump's recent visit to Saudi Arabia, Israel-Iran-Gaza, Russia-Ukraine, and India-Pakistan.

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About Stuart J. Hooper
Stuart J. Hooper is a Lecturer (ABD PhD, MA International Politics, MA Political Science) researching the Military Industrial Complex, Elites, War & Globalism.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Stuart J. Hooper: Global Flashpoints & Trump's Geopolitical Legacy #554

Paper Title:
Local Administration in Transition: Towards Inclusive and Accountable Local Governance in Syria

Date:
20 May 2025

Publishers: 
SALAR International + LUGARIT

Authors: 
Zedoun Al Zoubi, Omar Abdulaziz Hallaj, Ryan Knox, Obidah Alsayed Ali, Nihad Alamiri

Summary:
Syria’s reunification hinges on adopting flexible and inclusive local governance—not a return to centralization. This policy brief shows how Decree 107, if pragmatically reinterpreted, can bridge the current fragmented mosaic of local administration models with formal government structures, enhance accountability and stability, and foster a legitimate, resilient post-conflict transition. 

Link:
https://link.lugarit.com/HeiX

Photo: 
Marota City, Damascus — once envisioned as a model for local government financing, now stands as a stark reminder of the costs of centralized planning imposed on communities. Built on expropriated land, it embodies the disconnect between state-driven visions and local realities. 24 April 2025.  Photo © Jadd Hallaj / LUGARIT.


Local Administration in Transition: Towards Inclusive and Accountable Local Governance in Syria

العنوان 
الإدارة المحلية في المرحلة الانتقالية : نحو حوكمة محلية تشاركية ومسؤولة في سوريا

تاريخ النشر
٢٠ أيار ٢٠٢٥

الناشر 
SALAR International + LUGARIT

المؤلفون
زيدون الزعبي ، عمر عبد العزيز الحلاج ، رايان نوكس ، عبيدة السيد علي

الخلاصة
يعتمد توحيد سوريا على تبني حوكمة محلية تشاركية، لا على العودة إلى المركزية. يوضح هذا الموجز كيف يُمكن للمرسوم ١٠٧، إذا أُعيد تفسيره وطُبّق عمليًا، أن يربط النماذج الحالية المُجزأة للإدارة المحلية مع هياكل الدولة، وأن يُعزز المساءلة والاستقرار وشرعية العملية الانتقالية السياسية في البلاد.

الرابط
https://link.lugarit.com/HeiX

الصورة
ماروتا سيتي، دمشق - التي كانت تُعتبر في السابق نموذجًا لتمويل الحكومات المحلية، تُمثل الآن تذكيرًا صارخًا بتكاليف التخطيط المركزي المفروض على المجتمعات المحلية. بُنيت على أراضٍ مُصادرة، وهي تُجسد الفجوة بين الرؤى الحكومية والواقع المحلي. ٢٤ أبريل ٢٠٢٥. الصورة © جاد حلاج / لوغاريت.


الإدارة المحلية في المرحلة الانتقالية : نحو حوكمة محلية تشاركية ومسؤولة في سوريا

RFK Jr. says people should not take medical advice from him, defends HHS cuts, Trump heads to UAE as it hopes to advance AI ambitions, and man leaps into floodwaters and carries two women to safety. 

This Morning with Gordon Deal May 15, 2025

ElWa3d x Dorak Gai - Wegz Ft. Giggs (BigBasel Edit)

Hebeeby Leh - Tul8te Ft. AJ Tracey & Mabel (BigBasel Edit)

Donald J. Trump and the American economy are two beneficiaries of the president’s Gulf road show. So are the Gulf states, Syria, and Make America Great Again supporters within Mr. Trump’s administration.
In less than 24 hours in the kingdom, Mr. Trump received a standing ovation from Arab leaders and hundreds of thousands poured into the streets of Syrian towns and cities to celebrate his lifting of long-standing crippling sanctions—a rare achievement for an American president.
On the surface, Syrians, Saudis, and Israel critics have much to celebrate, including Syrians’ prospects for reconstruction, Gulf states’ defense, technology, and aviation mega deals with the United States, and seemingly upgraded Gulf relations with the US that potentially put them more on par with Israel.
Even so, Mr. Trump has yet to pass the litmus test on whether, how much, and what history he wrote on his Gulf tour, packaged in pomp and circumstance. 


Is Trump’s Gulf victory lap a watershed-Gaza may be the litmus test.

On his diplomatic tour of the Middle East’s Gulf region this week, President Donald Trump announced the U.S. will lift sanctions against Syria. U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, meanwhile, presented Iran with a written proposal for a nuclear deal. Russian President Vladimir Putin did not show up to planned negotiations with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Istanbul, though diplomacy was held among officials from Russia, Ukraine, the U.S., and Türkiye. The U.S. and China agreed to pause reciprocal tariffs for 90 days and remove key export and import bans as trade negotiations progress, and China pledged increased investment to Latin American countries.

Read the full Weekly Forecast Monitor here: https://newlinesinstitute.org/forecast/week-20250516/

Marxist Arrow by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Global Hotspots: Trump Tours the Middle East, Announces Syria Sanctions Relief

This week's update begins with a rundown of an updated State Department travel advisory for Germany which warns of an enduring threat of terrorism in the country. We then shift stateside for a look at a foiled terror plot to attack the U.S. Army Tank and Armaments Command (TACOM) near Detroit. An expanded written version of this report can be found within our weekly Threat Journal email newsletter. You can subscribe for FREE by simply visiting https://www.ThreatJournal.com . A link to this issue will immediately be sent to you via email.

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Homeland Security Weekly Update - May 17, 2025

LUGARIT is a small think tank active in international development.

The Geopolitics & Empire Podcast conducts interviews with prominent international experts on a wide-range of topics.

Past guests have included diplomats, government officials, whistleblowers, soldiers, spies, economists, academics, scientists, wealthy investors, dissidents, journalists, and musicians.

The broadcast seeks to gain insight from guests who come from the left, right, and beyond. It should go without saying that the host does not always agree with beliefs espoused by podcast invitees, but maintains an open mind, and believes it important to respectfully listen to a multitude of voices and let listeners come to their own conclusions.

*Music used in podcast intro is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

New Lines Institute focuses on issues at the intersection of U.S. foreign policy and global geopolitics.

For more on Newlines Institute, please visit our website: www.newlinesinstitute.org

Wake up with "This Morning: America's First News."  Gordon Deal and news anchor Nicole Murray go beyond the headlines with the day’s first look at news from the U.S. and around the world; bringing a lively blend of intelligent information, humor, and expert analysis to morning radio.

Dr. James M. Dorsey is a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, co-director of the University of Würzburg’s Institute for Fan Culture, and co-host of the New Books in Middle Eastern Studies podcast. James is the author of The Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer blog, a book with the same title as well as Comparative Political Transitions between Southeast Asia and the Middle East and North Africa, co-authored with Dr. Teresita Cruz-Del Rosario and  Shifting Sands, Essays on Sports and Politics in the Middle East and North Africa.

A weekly podcast from AlertsUSA, Inc expanding on SMS alerts sent as part of the National Threat and Incident Notification Service for Mobile Devices. Topics covered include terrorism, border security, nuclear and radiological emergencies, civil unrest, embassy warning messages, major public health threats such as epidemics and pandemics and more. Each weekly episode is a fast paced roundup of threats, developments and practical advice directly impacting your safety and security.

New tracks tagged #SYRIA