Obama Supports Syrian Opposition, But Singles Out Terrorist Group
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza(WASHINGTON) — The choice to label a Syrian rebel group as a terrorist organization while simultaneously recognizing the Syrian opposition as the country’s legitimate government is not a coincidence, Presi…
US Blacklists Syrian Group with Al Qaeda Ties
Alessio Romenzi/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — Throughout the 21-month long conflict in Syria, the U.S. has expressed concerns about the wrong people possibly hijacking the revolution to remove President Bashar al-Assad from power.On Tuesday, the Stat…
ABC News EXCLUSIVE: Obama Recognizes Syrian Opposition Group
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza(WASHINGTON) — In a diplomatic shift, President Obama said Tuesday his administration now formally recognizes the newly-formed, leading coalition of Syrian rebels who are fighting to topple Syria’s embattled Pre…
Is Syria’s Chemical Weapons Threat Dying Down?
Department of Defense Photo by Glenn Fawcett(KUWAIT CITY) — During his flight to Kuwait on Tuesday, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta addressed the threat of the Syrian government using chemical weapons against rebel fighters.While Panetta noted that …
Iran Alleges US Deploying Thousands of Troops to Iraq
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(TEHRAN, Iran) — Iran’s Press TV is claiming that the U.S. has secretly deployed 3,000 troops in Iraq, suggesting that it might have something to do with the ongoing conflict in Syria.According to Press TV, American forces have b…
Russia Says It Will Not Seek Syrian President’s Ouster
ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP/Getty Images(MOSCOW) — If Secretary of State Hillary Clinton thought her meeting last week in Ireland with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to discuss ways to resolve the civil war in Syria would prompt Moscow to push for S…
Winter Wreaks Havoc on Syrian Refugees
ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images(ATMA, Syria) — The Syrian Red Crescent estimates that more than two and a half million Syrians have been displaced inside the country with winter coming. Twenty-one months since the uprising began, fighting continues to r…
New Worries About Syria Prompt US and Russian Talks
Win McNamee/Getty Images(DUBLIN) — The U.S. stepped up efforts Thursday to try and reach a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Syria as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with her Russian counterpart during a human rights conference in Dublin, …
McCain Calls on Obama to Begin Preparations for Military Action in Syria
Chris Maddaloni/CQ Roll Call(WASHINGTON) — Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., Thursday called on President Obama to start preparing for possible military action in Syria, in light of the news that U..S intelligence agencies have detected Assad’s governm…
Angelina Jolie Visits Syrian Refugees
ABC/Lorenzo Bevilaqua(NEW YORK) — Angelina Jolie, who met with Syrian refugees in the neighboring country of Jordan in September, returned to the region this week.The United Nations’ refugee agency has announced that Jolie traveled to the Jordan-Syria…
Warning to Syria on Chemical Weapons Stemmed from Airfield Intel
Hemera/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) — Alarming intelligence about Syria’s chemical weapons stockpile earlier this week had to do with the apparent loading of elements of dangerous sarin nerve gas into bombs at Syrian airfields, a senior U.S. official …
Hillary Clinton Keeps Pressure on Syria’s Assad as Rebels Make Gains
Sasha Mordovets/Getty Images(BRUSSELS, Belgium) — A shift in favor of Syria’s opposition could be on the horizon in the country’s civil war, according to a U.S. official, but President Bashar al-Assad is not likely to leave anytime soon.Th…
NATO Approves Anti-Missile Batteries Along Turkish Border
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(BRUSSELS) — U.S.-made Patriot missiles will be deployed in strategic spots along the Turkish border in what is the first major step by NATO to deal with the possibility of the conflict in Syria widening.After conferring with the…
Rebels Blamed for Deadly Mortar Attack on Syrian School
Scott Peterson/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — Violence is reaching a fever pitch in Damascus and its surrounding communities as a school was struck by mortar fire on Tuesday, leaving at least 29 people dead in what the Syrian state news agency allege…
NATO to Announce Patriot Missile-Defense Along Turkish Border
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(BRUSSELS) — NATO is preparing to endorse a plan Tuesday setting up Patriot missile-defense batteries along some parts of the Turkish border to protect against any incursion by Syria.The weaponry will be provided by the U.S., Ger…
Obama Warns Syria Use of Chemical Weapons ‘Totally Unacceptable’
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza(WASHINGTON) — President Obama Monday warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that the use of chemical weapons by his regime would be “totally unacceptable” and that he would be “held accountab…
Internet Shut Down in Syria; Fighting Cripples Airport
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(DAMASCUS, Syria) — Someone in Syria pulled the plug on Internet access in the country Thursday, and most of the nation’s telephone service was also cut, raising concerns of many observers that the government of President B…
Twin Blasts Rock Damascus Suburb, At Least 34 Dead
Archival photo. LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — Two suicide bombers detonated vehicles packed with explosives in a Damascus suburb Wednesday, killing at least 34 people in a neighborhood of religious communities largely supporting t…
Twin Blasts Rock Damascus Suburb, At Least 34 Dead
Archival photo. LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — Two suicide bombers detonated vehicles packed with explosives in a Damascus suburb Wednesday, killing at least 34 people in a neighborhood of religious communities largely supporting t…
John McCain Wants Patriot Missiles to Build No-Fly Zone over Syria
Mark Wilson/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — Speaking at a forum in Washington, D.C., Sen. John McCain talked about the current situation in Syria, speculating that President Bashar al-Assad would ultimately lose his battle to stay in power.However, the Ari…