Shabbiha forces revamped for more prominent role

the EU decided to lift the embargo on Syrian rebels at a meeting in Brussels. EU members also agreed that none of them would send any weapons to the rebels before August 1st, a delay aimed at allowing the U.S.-Russian peace initiative to proceed.

Syrian director Maamoun al-Malla guides Syrian actresses Waha al-Rahib and Dima Bayaa during shooting of a sequence of TV series "Hamam Shami" or "Syrian Bath" in a studio in Abu Dhabi, on June 3, 2013. (AFP PHOTO/MARWAN NAAMANI) ABU DHABI: A ...

BEIRUT/SIDON: Fears over the country's stability grew Sunday after an anti-Hezbollah protester was killed and several others were injured outside the Iranian Embassy in Beirut in one of three rallies staged to protest the party's involvement in the ...

BEIRUT: The fall of the rebel-held city of Qusair this week has unleashed a storm of commentary and criticism on social media, with a heavy dose of outrage over the celebrations of victory by supporters of the Syrian regime and Hezbollah. Supporters ...

The Daily Star BEIRUT: The National Audiovisual Media Council released a report Friday examining the political orientations and bias of radio and television stations, mostly criticized for their overtly anti-Hezbollah stance. However, the report ...

In Akkar's remote farmland, Qusayr refugees tell of recent horrors Hidden from view behind rows of dark green trees in the verdant farmland surrounding the town of Halba, just 10km from the Syrian border in Lebanon's far north, dwell the country's ...

WAM ABU DHABI: Syrians, tragically, will need to start adjusting to a reality of displacement, in which their refuge may become an adopted homeland, while the world dithers on finding an answer, and their fellow countrymen fight bravely to defend ...

In less than two hours, Baida, a picturesque village near the Mediterranean, was the site of one of the worst mass killings in Syria's two-year-old war. BAIDA, Syria — Awakened by the sound of gunfire, Ahmad could hear the armed men knocking on ...

Sunday 0 0 0 0 CUMALİ ÖNAL c.onal@todayszaman.com It truly is not easy to understand the Middle East. There are three important factors that have helped bring the region to its current point: Iran, Israel and certain kingdoms under the protection ...