Topic: Damascus (Syria)

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Five things international community must give Syria after Bashar al-Assad

Transition in Syria after Bashar al-Assad will be impossible without constructive international support. From outsiders, Syria will need these five key things:
Five reasons why Syria may be at a tipping point

Since the start of the conflict in Syria, international observers have been watching the government of President Bashar al-Assad for signs that the once-feared regime might be vulnerable to overthrow. Despite Syrian efforts to crush the rebels and to stifle news out of the country, this past week has shown the strongest evidence yet that the end of the Assad regime may be near. Here are five signs that the Syrian conflict may finally be tipping in favor of the rebels.
Hezbollah 101: Who is the militant group, and what does it want?

The Shiite militant group and political party is a player not just in Lebanon, where it is based, but across the broader Middle East. It remains a staunch opponent of Israel, which it fought to a standstill in 2006, and a close ally of Iran and Syria – despite both regimes' crackdowns on citizens Hezbollah purports to champion.
Diplomacy or military intervention in Syria? 7 opinions from around the globe.

After 15 months of violence in Syria, President Bashar al-Assad announced yesterday that the country was facing a full-on civil war, a conflict he would do everything in his power to win.This adds increased pressure to the ongoing international question du jour: Is the answer to Syria’s conflict diplomacy or military intervention? Or something else entirely? From Thailand to Jordan, here are some opinions around the globe.
Briefing
Syria conflict: 5 warring factions

Syria is at the nexus of some of the Middle East's most central problems, meaning that fallout from its uprising is likely to ripple, in unpredictable ways, through the region. Here's a brief guide to the actors in the conflict.

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Terrorism & Security Syria's regime and rebels each try to use Israeli airstrike to their advantage

The Assad regime says the attack underscores the need for unity. The opposition has contrasted the regime's lack of response with its relentless attacks on its own people.
Syria's allies warn of retaliation for Israeli airstrikes, but threats likely hollow (+video)

Syria and Iran threatened to retaliate against Israel for its strikes on Syrian territory while Hezbollah deemed the attacks 'barbaric aggression,' but escalation is in no one's interests.
Israel sends message with dawn attack in Syria

In an early morning air raid Israel targeted weapons being transfered from Syrian President Assad's military to Hezbollah. Official secrecy shrouded the event, which reportedly killed two in Jamraya (located between Damascus and Lebanon's border).
Ferocious battle for strategic suburb could hold the keys to Damascus (+video)

Syria's Assad regime appears to be investing all it has in the battle for Daraya to ensure its grip on power. Sixty percent of Army troops are deployed in Damascus.
Syrian activists: scores of bodies found in Aleppo

Intense clashes between rebels and government troops have raged since opposition forces launched an offensive on Aleppo in July. Between 60 and 80 bodies were reportedly found in a contested neighborhood there.
War crimes in Syria: Time to appeal to International Criminal Court?

Fifty-seven countries on Monday urged the UN Security Council to ask the International Criminal Court at The Hague to investigate possible war crimes in Syria. The call comes as other groups report a spike in sexual violence in Syria.
Report: Rape a 'major reason' refugees flee Syria

The International Rescue Committee said in a report released today that Syria is facing a 'staggering humanitarian crisis.' More than 600,000 Syrians have fled the country.
Syrian troops take back key Damascus suburb, Daraya

The day after rebel forces took a key air base in northwest Syria, the Syrian army announced their control of Daraya, a suburb of Damascus. Each side seems to be alternatively making advances and losing ground, with little progress overall in the Syrian conflict.
Terrorism & Security Fate of Syria's Assad complicates international peace efforts

UN envoy Brahimi implied President Assad might not have a role in a future government, while Russia says only Syrians can make that call. Meanwhile, rebels said they took control of a key military base.
Syria swaps over 2,000 prisoners for Iranians held by rebels, Turkish NGO says

Over 40 Iranian hostages held since last summer by a Syrian rebel group were released Wednesday in exchange for civilian prisoners held by the Syrian government.
Terrorism & Security Assad speech dismissed by opposition and allies

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad made a rare public speech yesterday that, outside the regime, is seen as offering nothing more than many more months of violence.
Another Syria blast kills 11, state media reports

Syrian officials blamed 'terrorists' for a Damascus gas station explosion that left 11 dead and 40 injured.
Amid bloodshed and chaos, Syrian wages a war for neutral reporting

Rami Jarrah, a Syrian anti-regime activist now living in Cairo, is launching Syria's first non-state-run news outlet to provide something he sees as sorely missing: objective reporting.
Global News Blog Russia plans biggest war games since Soviet era

Some see the naval exercises scheduled later this month as cover for a massive evacuation of Russian citizens from war-torn Syria.
Terrorism & Security Any end in sight? Syrian conflict enters third calendar year (+video)

Many believed 2012 would be Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's last year in power, but at the outset of 2013 the conflict appears locked in a stalemate with alarming fatality rates.
UN Envoy warns of mass death next year in Syria

The international envoy to Syria emphasized the deteriorating situation in the country, and called for a quick end to the conflict, warning hundreds of thousands could die next year.
Russia urges Damascus to talk with Syrian opposition

Russia, Syria's biggest international supporter, is leaning on President Bashar al-Assad to begin a dialogue with the Syrian opposition and take steps toward ending the conflict.
Syrian conflict threatens to fracture Iraq

Semi-autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan and the central Iraqi government are on a collision course as the Kurds increasingly side with the Syrian opposition and Baghdad stands by the Assad regime.
Terrorism & Security UN envoy tries to revive Syria peace plan

The plan from UN special envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, is unlikely to gain traction without more concessions to the Syrian opposition.
Assad sends envoy to Moscow for talks on ending Syria's conflict

The Syrian senior diplomat is expected to discuss the UN mediator's proposals for ending the conflict. Russia, meanwhile, has signaled growing acceptance of President Assad exiting power.
In war-torn Syria, tactic of targeting civilians is on the rise

Under international law, it's a war crime to target civilians in a war zone. That hasn't halted the tactic in Syria, where hundreds of civilians have died in attacks such as one Sunday at a bakery in Halfaya in a rebel stronghold.
Lebanese border means little in Syria's civil war

With Sunni villages sheltering Syrian rebel fighters and Shiite villages shipping Hezbollah fighters across the border, northern Lebanon is now just another frontline in Syria's war.
Terrorism & Security Syria fires more Scud missiles as refugee projections climb

NATO condemned Syria for firing Scud-type missiles yesterday, which Syria denies doing. The UN says the violence could result in as many as 1 million refugees over the next six months.
Terrorism & Security Palestinians begin returning to Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria (+video)

Palestinians are returning to their refugee camp after fighting sent them fleeing, but the number fleeing Syria or facing internal displacement continues to rise.
Syria: rebels fight Palestinian pro-Assad group (+video)

When the revolt against Assad's rule began in March 2011, the half-million-strong Palestinian community in Syria stayed on the sidelines. But as the civil war deepened, many Palestinians have taken sides.