Simon Speakman Cordall

Simon Speakman Cordall is a freelance writer.

Author Articles

A fighter from the Syrian Democratic Forces gives bread to children near the village of Baghouz, Deir ez-Zor province, Syria. (Reuters)
Radicalisation threatens Syria’s children of war
March 28, 2020
A US Marine Corps Osprey leaves the US Embassy compound in Aukar, north-east of Beirut, March 19. (AP)
Hezbollah faces scrutiny over release of SLA commander
March 28, 2020
Lebanese President Michel Aoun (C) leads a cabinet meeting at Baabda Palace near Beirut, March 12. (DPA)
Will Lebanon’s Eurobond default spur much-needed reform?
March 13, 2020
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (L) and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu attend a meeting with the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Kremlin in Moscow, March 5. (AFP)
Why Turkey can’t afford a confrontation with Russia
March 07, 2020
Members of the Syrian National Army, an alliance of Turkey-backed rebels, ride in a pickup truck before heading out of Sarmin, south-east of Idlib, February 24. (AFP)
Uncertain future for thousands of Idlib jihadists
February 29, 2020
Lebanese President Michel Aoun (C) at a meeting to discuss the financial and economic situation in the country at the Presidential Palace in Baabda, east of Beirut, February 13. (AFP)
Aoun’s claims of international financial support under scrutiny
February 14, 2020
Burdensome links. Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab attends the 2020 discussion budget session at the parliament in Beirut, January 27. (DPA
Lebanon’s new cabinet still contends with power of the street
January 31, 2020
Economic pain. Syrians scramble to purchase goods at a shopping festival organised by the Damascus Chamber of Industry in support of the local currency, in Damascus, January 22.(AFP)
Syria revives Soviet-inspired laws to slow economic meltdown, save currency
January 25, 2020
Proxy’s tribute. Supporters of the Shia Hezbollah movement hold posters of slain Iranian Major-General Qassem Soleimani as the movement’s leader delivers a speech in Beirut’s southern suburbs, January 5. (AFP)
Hezbollah’s support for Iran exposes its vulnerabilities at home and abroad
January 18, 2020
A prompt answer. Lebanese protesters shout slogans outside parliament to denounce the nomination of Prime Minister-designate Hassan Diab in Beirut, December 19. (AFP)
Naming of prime minister-designate adds to Lebanon unrest
December 21, 2019
Syrian refugee children stand outside a tent at a refugee camp in Suruc, on the Turkish-Syrian border. (AP)
Turkey’s relocating of Syrian refugees under way
December 14, 2019
A Syrian refugee waits in Beirut to board a bus to Syria, December 3. (AP)
Fallout on Syria from Lebanon’s crisis is not just economic
December 07, 2019
Guarding the status quo. Militants from the Lebanese Amal Shia movement try to block the road in front of Lebanese women during a march in Beirut, November 27.(AFP)
Hezbollah, Amal turn to violence as ongoing protests shake Lebanon’s sectarian system
November 30, 2019
A long way to go. Lebanese demonstrators clash with anti-riot police on the road leading to the Presidential Palace in Baabda, on the outskirts of Beirut, November 13. (AFP)
Lebanon protests undermine Hezbollah’s sectarian narrative
November 22, 2019
Syrian President Bashar Assad (L) speaks with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Damascus, last April.(AP)
Syria moves further into Iran’s orbit with new deal
November 09, 2019
Demonstrators watch a televised speech by Lebanese President Michel Aoun in Zouk Mosbeh north of Beirut, October 24. (AFP)
Lebanon protests cut across sects, regions, social backgrounds
October 26, 2019
© Yaser Ahmed for The Arab Weekly
Anti-government protests in Lebanon attract wide cross-sectarian support
October 19, 2019
A Lebanese man walks past a money exchange company in Beirut. (AFP)
Devaluing currency not imminent but effective reforms remain distant
October 12, 2019
Many challenges. UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen attends a news conference in Geneva on the creation of a constitutional committee for Syria, October 2. (AFP)
Caution over Syria constitution process
October 05, 2019
At wits’ end? Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri (R) meets US Treasury Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing Marshall Billingslea at the governmental palace in Beirut, September 23. (AFP)
US sanctions to spare Hezbollah’s political allies, for now
September 28, 2019