Bashar al-Assad | GlobalPost

Syria opposition warns of danger to Qusayr residents

Agence France-PresseMay 14, 2013 06:30

Syria's opposition National Coalition warned Tuesday that 30,000 civilians in the rebel-held town of Qusayr faced an "extremely dangerous situation" as regime troops prepare to attack. President Bashar al-Assad has "mobilised military forces in the direction of the city of Qusayr, in the province of Homs," the statement said, describing reports of dozens of tanks and large groups of soldiers on the outskirts of the town.

Security Council says Turkey bombers must face justice

Agence France-PresseMay 13, 2013 20:46

The UN Security Council said Monday that the perpetrators of the "reprehensible" bomb attacks on Turkey's border with Syria must be brought to justice. The 15-nation council "condemned in the strongest terms the deadly attacks" in the Turkish town of Reyhanli on Saturday that left at least 48 dead and injured scores. A council statement "underlined the need to bring perpetrators, organizers, financiers and sponsors of these reprehensible acts of terrorism to justice, and urged all states" to cooperate with the Turkish investigation.

Syria Internet back up after day-long outage

Thomson ReutersMay 13, 2013 10:46

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria's Internet and phone lines started working again on Wednesday evening, residents said, after a day-long blackout left much of the population cut off from the outside world. Communication networks have been crucial for opposition activists trying to get out videos and information about a two-year conflict that has killed more than 70,000 people. Activists called the outage an intentional move to aid countrywide military operations.

AFP World News Agenda

Agence France-PresseMay 10, 2013 17:32

What's happening around the world on Thursday: -- TOP STORIES -- + Police grill brothers over kidnapped US women + Syria opposition insists on Assad exit for deal + Khan recovers in hospital as Pakistan poll looms CLEVELAND, Ohio: US investigators probe how three women kidnapped over a decade ago in separate abductions in Cleveland were held for so long without detection. Picture. Video. Graphic (US-CRIME-KIDNAP)

Turkey condemns Israeli air strikes in Syria

Thomson ReutersMay 7, 2013 11:00

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan condemned on Tuesday Israeli air strikes on targets near Damascus, saying they were an opportunity for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government to cover up its own killings. "The air strike Israel carried out on Damascus is completely unacceptable. There is no rationale, no pretext that can excuse this operation," Erdogan told a parliamentary meeting of his ruling party.

Russia bars its airlines from flying over Syria after civilian plane reportedly faced threat

The Canadian PressApril 30, 2013 16:16

MOSCOW - Russia has banned its airlines from flying over Syria after a civilian plane was reported to have come under an unspecified threat in Syrian airspace. The ban was announced Tuesday by the state air transport agency, Rosaviatsiya. The previous day, the Transport Ministry said the crew of a Nordwind charter flight carrying 159 people from the Egyptian resort of Sharm-al-Sheikh to the Russian city of Kazan saw war activities on the ground that endangered the plane. The aircraft landed in Kazan safely.

U.S. believes Syria used sarin against opposition

Kyodo News InternationalApril 30, 2013 15:52

The U.S. government said Thursday it is likely that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons including sarin in its war against opposition forces in the country, citing intelligence assessments. In a letter to U.S. lawmakers, the U.S. administration of President Barack Obama said, "Our intelligence community does assess with varying degrees of confidence that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale in Syria, especially the chemical agent sarin."

UK: Guardian newspaper says its Twitter feeds were hacked; Syrian group claims responsibility

The Canadian PressApril 29, 2013 18:15

LONDON - The Guardian newspaper said Monday that its Twitter accounts have been hacked, and it cited a claim of responsibility from the group calling itself the Syrian Electronic Army. The British paper reported on its website that several of its feeds on the social media site were broken into over the weekend. It said that it has since discovered that the attack apparently originated from Internet protocol addresses within Syria.

Obama wants facts on Syria chem weapons first

Agence France-PresseApril 26, 2013 13:01

US President Barack Obama is awaiting a "definitive judgment" on whether the Syrian regime used chemical weapons against rebel fighters before taking action, the White House said Friday. The United States said Thursday for the first time that it believed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime had likely used chemical weapons against opposition forces, though cautioned spy agencies were not 100 percent sure.

Kerry, Lavarov discuss Syria, political solution

Agence France-PresseApril 23, 2013 11:45

US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov discussed the deteriorating situation in Syria on Tuesday, stressing the need for a political solution, a US official said. The two have met several times since Kerry took office earlier this year, with Syria a growing cause of international concern amid fears the bloody conflict could spill over into an already volatile region.