Dirty Water Worsening Syria’s Humanitarian Crisis
BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — The humanitarian crisis in Syria caused by the two-year-long civil war is becoming more dire, the World Health Organization announced on Tuesday, due to outbreaks of hepatitis A and other diseases caused by po…
Iran Warns Israel It Will Regret Air Strikes Against Syria
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(DAMASCUS, Syria) — Syria received a vote of support Monday when the head of Iran’s National Security Council warned Israel it would regret last week’s air strike near the border with Lebanon that targeted a truck convoy ca…
Israel Makes Indirect Admission to Air Strike in Syria
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(MUNICH) — Israel finally delivered a public yet coy statement on Sunday about last week’s assault on a truck convoy inside Syria.At a security conference in Munich, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak insisted he could not “add …
Syria and Allies Condemn Israeli Air Strike
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — There was still no word from the Israeli government Thursday confirming an air strike earlier in the week that targeted a truck convoy in Syria that U.S. officials say was carrying missiles to the Hezbollah in Lebano…
Israel and Syria Differ on Target of Israeli Air Strike
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(DAMASCUS, Syria) — In spite of evidence to the contrary, the Syrian government on Wednesday accused Israel of conducting an air strike against one of its military facilities in Damascus the day before.According to a report by Sy…
Group Charges Syrian Government with Executing Scores of Men
JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — An opposition group is accusing the Syrian government of war atrocities after the bodies of dozens of men were reportedly pulled from a river in the northern city of Aleppo.The British-based Syrian Observ…
Is Syrian President’s Wife Pregnant?
MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/Getty Images(BEIRUT) — Amid all the instability in Syria comes word that President Bashar al-Assad’s wife is pregnant.If the report in the Beirut-based al-Akhbar newspaper is true, it would be the fourth child for the president and A…
Iran, Russia Denounce Missile Batteries on Turkey’s Border with Syria
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — NATO’s deployment of Patriot missile batteries in some areas of Turkey’s border with Syria has not just disturbed Damascus but also its close allies, Russia and Iran.Last year, NATO members approved the batteries as …
UN Warns of Major Food Shortages in Syria
BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — The growing humanitarian crisis in Syria resulting from the two-year civil war now includes dramatic food shortages and steep price increases on everyday supplies.The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organi…
Small Group of Russian Expatriates Forced to Leave Syria
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — In what may be a portent of things to come, about 100 Russians who live in Syria are getting ready to go back to their homeland.The Russians were described as having lost their homes due to the ongoing fighting in Sy…
Bashar Al-Assad’s Mother Leaves Syria
Sasha Mordovets/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — Will Syrian President Bashar al-Assad soon follow his mother out the door?According to various foreign published reports, his mother, Anisa Makhluf, has gone to live with al-Assad’s only sister, Bushra a…
Activists Accuse Syrian President’s Followers of Killing Dozens
Alessio Romenzi/AFP/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — As many as 106 Syrians were reportedly killed this week when pro-government forces besieged the village of Haswiyeh outside the city of Homs.Activists said on Thursday that the alleged onslaught by t…
State Department Denies Report Syria Used Chemical Weapons
MASSOUD HOSSAINI/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — The State Department is denying a published report that the U.S. believes Syria may have already used chemical weapons against its own people.Earlier this week, Foreign Policy magazine published an onlin…
Coordinated Bombings in Northern Syria Kill Government Forces
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(DAMASCUS, Syria) — At least two dozen people were killed Wednesday in Syria’s northern Idlib province by what activists claim was a trio of coordinated car bombings.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that most of the v…
Scores Killed, Wounded at Syrian University
AFP/Getty Images(ALEPPO, Syria) — The two sides involved in the ongoing Syrian conflict are blaming each other for bombings Tuesday at the University of Aleppo that left at least 82 people dead and scores more wounded.Witnesses said there were two pow…
Syrian Military Stepping Up Bombardment of Damascus Neighborhoods?
JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — As casualties in Syria’s capital continue to mount, activists seeking the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad said on Monday that the government is now waging unprecedented attacks on sections of Damascus…
Avoiding Rape in Syria Top Concern of Women Refugees
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Women in Syria are fleeing their war-torn nation, mostly to escape the threat of sexual violence, according to a report by the International Rescue Committee.At least half-a-million people have left Syria over the pa…
Damascus Suburb Could Be Key to Winning Syrian Conflict
Scott Peterson/Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) — The battle for control of the Syrian capital of Damascus might come down to which side can hold onto the suburb known as Dariya, according to a report in The Los Angeles Times.Fighting between the Syrian mili…
Syria Denounces UN Envoy
ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — In yet another setback to the quest of finding a quick end to the conflict in Syria, Damascus is now casting aspersions on United Nations and Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi.Ahead of Brahimi’s meetin…
US Ground Troops Could Help Secure Syrian Chemical Sites Only in Peaceful Situation, Says Defense Chief
Alessio Romenzi/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — At his news conference Thursday, Defense Secretary Panetta said the concern now about Syria’s chemical weapons stockpile is what to do with them should the Assad regime fall. Panetta said U.S….