Syria

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Shifting focus in Syria (Illustration by Alexander Hunter for The Washington Times)

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Illustration on options in Syria by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times

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Syria Strike Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and Syrian President Bashar Assad watch the troops marching at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria, on Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Declaring a victory in Syria, Putin on Monday visited a Russian military air base in the country and announced a partial pullout of Russian forces from the Mideast nation. (Mikhail Klimentyev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

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Illustration on Syria's role in middle-east peace by Linas Garsys/The Washington Times

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Illustration on changing course in Syria by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times

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Illustration on the aggressive strategic future of Syria by Linas Garsys/The Washington Times

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Turkish Army artillery fire towards Syria as seen from the outskirts of the village of Sugedigi, Turkey, near the border with Syria, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. Turkey's ground troops entered the enclave of Afrin, in northern Syria on Sunday and were advancing with Turkish-backed Syrian opposition forces in their bid to oust Syrian Kurdish forces from the region. AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) (ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOHGRAPHS)

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Smoke billows from a position inside Syria, after a Turkish Army artillery fired, as seen from the outskirts of the village of Sugedigi, Turkey, adjacent to the border with Syria, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. Turkey's ground troops entered the enclave of Afrin, in northern Syria on Sunday and were advancing with Turkish-backed Syrian opposition forces in their bid to oust Syrian Kurdish forces from the region.(AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) (ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOGRAPHS)

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Iran's Road to Syria Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

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Mansour al-Omari, a Syrian human-rights activist documenting cases of people who have disappeared under President Bashar Assad's government, talks about how he smuggled scraps of fabric with the names of fellow inmates out of Syria that he is presenting to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum for preservation at the conservation center, Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2017, in Bowie, Md. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

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This frame grab from video released on May 26, 2017 and provided by the government-controlled Syrian Central Military Media, shows a Syrian army soldier inspects a tunnel used by Islamic states, in Homs provence, Syria. Arabic reads, "Central Military Media, Homs, Syria." (Syrian Central Military Media, via AP)

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This frame grab from video released on May 26, 2017 and provided by the government-controlled Syrian Central Military Media, shows Syrian forces take up positions during fighting between Government forces and Islamic State group militants in Homs provence in central Syria. Arabic reads, "Central Military Media, Homs, Syria." (Syrian Central Military Media, via AP)

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This frame grab from video released on May 26, 2017 and provided by the government-controlled Syrian Central Military Media, shows Syrian forces fires their weapons at Islamic State position, in Homs provence, Syria. Arabic reads, "Central Military Media, Homs, Syria." As the noose tightens on Islamic State militants in Syria, the United States and the coalition it leads will face a choice with no great options: it will be difficult to defeat the militants without cooperating with the internationally ostracized government of President Bashar Assad _ but doing so might be seen as legitimizing his continued rule. (Syrian Central Military Media, via AP)

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This frame grab from video released on May 24, 2017 and provided by the government-controlled Syrian Central Military Media, shows a Syrian forces tank fires at Islamic states positions at Palmyra desert, in Homs provence, Syria. Arabic reads, "Central Military Media, Palmyra, Syria." (Syrian Central Military Media, via AP)

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This frame grab from video released Wednesday June 28, 2017, by ANHA news agency for the semi-autonomous Kurdish areas in Syria, that is consistent with independent AP reporting, shows Brett McGurk, left, the top U.S. envoy for the international coalition combatting the Islamic State group, leaving after a visit to Ayn Issa, Syria. McGurk met with members of a local council expected to administer the city of Raqqa in Syria following its capture from the militants. (ANHA News Agency, via AP)

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FILE -In this fie picture taken on Tuesday April 4, 2017, Abdul-Hamid Alyousef, 29, holds his twin babies who were killed during a suspected chemical weapons attack, in Khan Sheikhoun in the northern province of Idlib, Syria. The Syrian government on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 dismissed White House allegations that it was preparing a new chemical weapons attack, as activists reported an airstrike on an Islamic State-run jail in eastern Syria that they said killed more than 40 prisoners. (Alaa Alyousef via AP, File)

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In this Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016 photo released by the Syrian Presidency, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks to The Associated Press at the presidential palace in Damascus, Syria. The Syrian government on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 dismissed White House allegations that it was preparing a new chemical weapons attack, as activists reported an airstrike on an Islamic State-run jail in eastern Syria that they said killed more than 40 prisoners. (Syrian Presidency via AP, File)

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FILE - In this May 18, 2017 file photo, a Syrian National flag hangs out of a damaged building at the mountain resort town of Zabadani in the Damascus countryside, Syria. The Syrian government on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 dismissed White House allegations that it was preparing a new chemical weapons attack, as activists reported an airstrike on an Islamic State-run jail in eastern Syria that they said killed more than 40 prisoners. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File)

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FILE -In this Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016 file photo released by the Syrian Presidency, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks to The Associated Press at the presidential palace in Damascus, Syria. The Syrian government on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 dismissed White House allegations that it was preparing a new chemical weapons attack, as activists reported an airstrike on an Islamic State-run jail in eastern Syria that they said killed more than 40 prisoners. (Syrian Presidency via AP, File)