The fall of Russian ally Bashar al-Assad in Syria has disrupted the Kremlin's strategy not only for the Mediterranean but also for Africa, pushing it to focus on Libya as a potential foothold, experts say.

The collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria, a long-standing ally of Russia, has upended the Kremlin’s strategy across the Mediterranean and Africa. This shift is forcing Moscow to redirect its focus toward Libya as a potential new stronghold, according to experts.

Russia’s apparent fast-tracking of plans to establish a military hub in Libya could worsen that country’s protracted conflict.

Assad’s spectacular defenestration last December, he has joined a growing list of fallen Middle Eastern despots: Reza Pahlavi of Iran, Gaddafi of Libya, Mubarak of Egypt, Saleh of Yemen, and Ben Ali of Tunisia,

Turkish Airlines is resuming flights to the Syrian capital, Damascus (DAM), and to Benghazi (BEN), Libya’s second city, from its Istanbul (IST) hub. The two destinations had featured on Turkish Airlines’ network in the past but were discontinued due to the military and political situation in both countries.

It comes after the new Syrian government terminates a 49-year lease on the base the Kremlin brokered with the Bashar al-Assad regime in 2019

Analysts say the return suggests that Moscow is preparing to evacuate one of its most valuable overseas bases.

Syria's new authorities are using Islamic teachings to train a fledgling police force, a move officers say aims to instil a sense of morality as they race to fill a security vacuum after dismantling ousted president Bashar al-Assad's notoriously corrupt and brutal security forces.

Greek authorities said Thursday they had found 66 migrants in two locations on the southern Greek island of Crete who had sailed to the island from the Libyan coast in north Africa, a route increasingly used by smuggling rings.

Syria's top diplomat said on Wednesday that lifting economic sanctions imposed during the rule of ousted president Bashar al-Assad was "key" to stability in the country. "Removing economic sanctions is the key to the stability of Syria,

The new authorities in Syria ended an agreement with the Russian company managing the key port of Tartous in the latest sign of Russia's waning influence in the country after the fall of the regime.

The Syrian government has canceled the lease agreement that allowed Russia access to the port of Tartus. According to British intelligence and other sources, this presents a significant problem for the Kremlin,