Topic: Syria
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3 new novels featuring risk-taking protagonists
In these three new releases, characters seize at chances for new experiences.
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Briefing
Chemical weapons 101: Six facts about sarin and Syria’s stockpile
President Obama said Assad's use of chemical weapons would be a 'red line' for US. Did he use sarin or any other chemical weapon against his own people?
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Top 3 threats to the United States: the good and bad news
The annual Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community is out this week, a widely-anticipated report compiled by the nation’s intelligence agencies. Here is the good and bad news about the top three threats facing the United States, according to an unclassified version of the report.
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Five energy challenges for Venezuela
With the passing of Hugo Chávez, the issue of what Venezuela chooses to do with its oil moves to center stage for the energy industry – and for environmentalists. Here are five energy challenges that Venezuela will have to face.
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When dictators fall, so do their banknotes
The following now defunct or possibly soon-to-be defunct banknotes are imbued with the symbols and iconography of their leaders, past and present.
All Content
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Good Reads: Back to Tahrir Square, Syrians get violent, and Occupy Wall Street
It's the autumn of discontent, with Egyptian activists worried about a military comeback, Syrian protesters taking up arms, and the Occupy Wall Street movement in the US and Europe.
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The Monitor's View: In Arab Spring, mercy is as mercy does
When Obama promises to support the Arab Spring, he can't then sell weapons to Bahrain, even as that dictatorship gives harsh sentences to doctors who treat wounded protesters.
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Syrian opposition forms unity council, hoping to continue Arab Spring
Creation of the Syrian opposition's unity council comes as the US is set to call for a UN resolution to consider further sanctions against Syria if it does not halt the crackdown that has left some 2,700 dead.
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Why a watered-down UN resolution on Syria may still not pass
The UN Security Council vote could come as early as Tuesday afternoon. The US and European powers support the 'better than nothing' resolution, which contains only the threat of sanctions against Syria.
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Gov. Rick Perry's call for US troops in Mexico: 10 questions he should answer
Blogger James Bosworth lists questions for presidential candidate and Texas Governor Rick Perry, who said that sending US troops to Mexico may be the only way to curtail drug violence.
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Syrian oppositon groups formally unify, overcoming key hurdle
The unification of Syrian opposition groups is almost certain to improve coordination with the international community, whose backing could add crucial momentum to the uprising.
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Why dictators now face civilian revolt, from Syria to Swaziland
Protests in a growing number of countries show that citizens have more tools at their disposal to throw their dictators off balance, if not out of power.
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Mahmoud Abbas: 'Of whom should I be afraid?'
In an interview, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas discusses the Palestinian bid for statehood recognition at the UN; peaceful opposition to Israel; relations with Syria, Turkey, and Iran; Obama's words vs. actions; and his willingness to return to negotiations.
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Defecting Syria soldiers join ranks with protesters
Syria's uprising has taken a violent turn as soldiers have abandoned Bashar al-Assad's regime and joined antigovernment protesters.
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Why Europe is pushing for sanctions on Syria – not intervention
Alistair Burt, a top British parliamentarian whose portfolio includes the Middle East and N. Africa, explains how Britain's response to the Arab Spring has been 'heavily influenced' by the Iraq war.
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Q&A with Syrian jihadist: Minorities have nothing to fear in post-Assad Syria
A Syrian leader who waged jihad in Afghanistan, Bosnia, and Iraq says that a year of reexamining the Quran has caused his group to treat other religions with more tolerance.
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When is a terrorist not a terrorist? America's Haqqani conundrum.
Congress is pushing the State Department to list the Haqqani network in Pakistan as a terrorist organization. Military officials have said Haqqani fighters are America's most formidable foe in Afghanistan, but the Haqqanis could also be key to any reconciliation efforts.
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Good Reads: Protests in Syria, Soviets in Kabul, US-Pakistan breakup
Al Jazeera spends seven weeks with both sides of the protests in Syria; the Guardian's reporter unpacks a 1981 trip to Afghanistan, and Pakistanis are losing that loving feeling with the US.
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Palestinian statehood: why Arabs have turned on Obama
A year ago, President Obama wowed the United Nations General Assembly by announcing that he looked forward to welcoming an independent Palestine into the community of nations in 12 months. Yet there he was last week, explaining why he would veto a Palestinian statehood bid in the UN Security Council. Mr. Obama, who made Israeli-Palestinian peace a priority from the outset of his administration, is now the US leader with incongruously bad relations with the Arab world. Here are three key causes of the deterioration in relations – and three steps that the United States can take to mend ties.
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Good Reads: An expected debacle in Yemen; Obama finds his inner fighter
Yemen's protests have now turned violent, with dozens killed on the streets of Sanaa. And the economic woes of the world have become the political woes of President Obama.
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Will Yemen's fierce fighting push protesters to take up arms?
After three days of rocket attacks, shelling, and shooting that have killed 60, some worry Yemen's protesters – who have so far used sticks and Molotov cocktails – may take up conventional arms.
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Why Russia is blocking international action against Syria
Russia has a strong financial stake in the survival of the Assad regime. But it also opposes Western intervention on principle – particularly in the wake of NATO's Libya campaign.
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An Israel in trouble makes a peace deal more urgent
Israel faces trouble on all sides – in Egypt, Syria, from Iran, and in the Palestinian push for statehood at the United Nations. These challenges make a peace agreement on a two-state solution more urgent than ever.
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Russia dooms Western hopes for tough UN action against Syria
Western countries including the US say the United Nations needs to get tough on Syria for its crackdown on pro-democracy protesters. But Russia appeared to block those plans Monday.
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Syrian revolutionaries request foreign intervention
A new coalition of Syrian revolutionary groups made a formal request for outside help Thursday, asking first for human rights monitors who could help deter attacks on civilians.
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UN chief urges stronger global action on Syria's Assad
UN Secretary-General Ban expressed frustration about the lack of unity among UN members on how best to deal with Syria's brutal crackdown on a pro-democracy uprising.
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Labor Day: 5 things you probably didn't know about the end-of-summer holiday
Labor Day: From a debate surrounding the holiday's founder to an enigmatic social rule, the history of Labor Day offers plenty of material to keep you reading on your time away.
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Ban on Syrian oil: EU tightens the noose
The EU announced the embargo on oil imports amid the continued repression of pro-democracy forces in Syria. Western diplomats see renewed efforts at the UN to adopt a resolution on sanctions.
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If Obama looks as if he'll lose in 2012, what about Hillary Clinton?
Approval ratings for Obama are at a historic low. Unemployment is not budging. Clinton would have to step down as secretary of State. Would it be unseemly to campaign against a president, in whose cabinet she once served? Just ask Jon Huntsman Jr.
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Qaddafi issues threats: 'Let Libya burn'
Libya's Muammar Qaddafi spoke on a friendly TV station today and insisted the tide is about to turn in his favor.
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