The new administration in Damascus has announced plans to begin overseeing local administrations and services following the handover of responsibilities from the former ministers of the deposed regime.

In a sign of shifting relations, several countries have resumed diplomatic engagement with Syria, including Turkiye, which reopened its embassy in Damascus on Friday, after closing it in 2012 due to the ongoing war.

On the security front, multiple airstrikes targeted Damascus, its countryside, Douma, and As Suwayda on Friday night, as Israeli forces continued their military operations in the southern buffer zone of Syria.

A Russian cargo plane was reported to have departed from Russia’s Latakia air base for Libya on Saturday, with a Syrian security official confirming the departure and noting that additional Russian flights from the Hmeimim air base are expected in the coming days.

Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered Israeli troops to remain stationed on Mount Hermon throughout the winter, a strategic position overlooking Damascus, according to a statement from his office on Friday.

Additionally, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi raised alarms on Saturday regarding the growing threat of terrorist groups like al-Qaeda and ISIS in Syria, warning that these groups could turn the country into a haven for extremism, destabilizing the region further.

Al Jazeera.