Bashar Al Assad

Russia’s Putin announces withdrawal from Syria

Damascus - Noura Khowam

Russian President Vladimir Putin has indicated he has ordered his military to withdraw a "significant part" of Russia's forces from Syria, after regaining control of most of the country. Russia would now focus on talks between the Syrian opposition and the government. Russian President Vladimir Putin made stops Monday in Turkey, Syria and Egypt to cover a broad range ofRead more

Assad’s departure is not condition for the political process

Damascus - Noura Khowam

Syria’s President Bashar Al Assad has regained the upper hand after six years of conflict, but his regime faces a tough diplomatic fight against international isolation and negotiations with newly powerful Kurds. “The regime has indeed militarily regained control of large swathes of Syrian territory, but speaking of a political and diplomatic victory would be exaggerated and premature,” said KarimRead more

Actor Mustafa Al Khani is under investigation

Beirut - Michelle Hadad

Sources revealed that Syrian actor Mustafa Al Khani is still imprisoned in the Syrian capital of Damascus in the electronic crime section, saying that he has not been referred to criminal section. They added that Syrian ambassador to United Nations Bashar Al Jaffary filed a lawsuit against the Syrian actor accusing him of insulting a diplomatic personality and smearing theRead more

Syrian names immortalised in blood

Damascus - Muslimchronicle

Under the clinical white lights of a Maryland conservation centre on Tuesday, Mansour Omari carefully laid out five scraps of worn material that had traveled within the collar of his shirt—past Syrian government forces and across oceans—covered in blood and rust, and in the fading names of the disappeared. A human rights activist fighting for freedom of speech and chroniclingRead more

Nusra militants leave Arsal amid fears of ISIS

Beirut - Fady Samaha

Buses carrying nearly 8,000 of Syrian Jabhat Al Nusra fighters and refugees headed to the Syrian rebel-held province of Idlib on Wednesday morning after Lebanon’s Hizbollah group and the militants exchanged prisoners. Their departure and the prisoner swap was part of a ceasefire agreement — brokered by the Lebanese authorities — after a six-day battle between the two groups endedRead more

Sources say George Wassof has not been excluded

Beirut - Michelle Hadad

Sources revealed that Lebanese singer George Wasoof expressed his astonishment over what was published about his exclusion from participation in the festival "Live Ashrafieh" scheduled to be held in the Lebanese capital of Beirut due to his Syrian citizenship and his previous songs for President Bashar Al Assad. The sources added that the Lebanese singer has not received any invitationRead more

IS militant linked to Charlie Hebdo attack could still be alive: Iraq

Baghdad - Arab today

An IS militant linked to the deadly 2015 attack on French weekly Charlie Hebdo could be still be alive, the Iraqi military said on Saturday. Boubaker El Hakim was reported by American defence officials to have been killed in November, in a U.S. drone strike in Raqqa, IS's de facto capital in Syria. Iraqi intelligence supplied information to the SyrianRead more

G7 leaders meet in Italy as Boris Johnson pushes for fresh sanctions against Russia

Rome - Arab Today

G7 leaders are gathering in Italy today where British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson will push for further sanctions on Russia, The Telegraph reported. The Foreign Ministers will discuss whether Russia should face fresh financial penalties if it does not pull its armed forces out of Syria and end its support for President Bashar al Assad. As the foreign ministers ofRead more

Syria gas attack is enormous political gamble

Beirut - Arab today

President Bashar Al Assad took an enormous gamble if his forces were behind the chemical weapons attack that killed dozens in northern Syria: committing an overt war crime just as the Trump administration and most Western leaders had made clear they are no longer seeking his immediate removal. Although Al Assad can count on the backing of his top allies,Read more

Trump hints at military action in Syria

Palm Beach - Arab today

President Donald Trump on Thursday denounced Bashar Al Assad as responsible for an “egregious” crime, suggesting the United States could be poised to take action against the Syrian leader over this week’s apparent chemical attack. “What [Al] Assad did is terrible. What happened in Syria is truly one of the egregious crimes,” Trump said while travelling to Florida on boardRead more