Syrians in Opposition Enclave Protest Türkiye-Syria Contacts

This aerial view shows demonstrators raising Syrian opposition flags and banners, as they rally against a potential rapprochement between Ankara and the Syrian regime, on January 6, 2023, in the opposition-held northwestern city of Idlib. (AFP)

Thousands of Syrians held protests Friday in different parts of the opposition-held northwest against recent moves by the governments in Damascus and Ankara to improve ties. 

The protests in villages and towns in Idlib and Aleppo provinces came a week after the Turkish, Syrian and Russian defense ministers held previously unannounced talks in Moscow in the first such meeting between rivals Türkiye and Syria since the start of the Syrian conflict 11 years ago.