Syria

Read recent Syrian news stories and current events on Newser.com

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Syria Protesters Take Over City Square

 Syria Forces Fire on 
 City Square 
UPDATED
Apr 19, 2011 4:27 AM CDT

Syria Forces Fire on City Square

Protesters vowed not to leave until government is brought down

(Newser) - Security forces opened fire with live ammunition and tear gas on hundreds of anti-government demonstrators in a major square in Homs today, killing at least one, witnesses said. "They shot at everything, there was smoke everywhere," an activist told the AP by phone. "I saw people on...

WikiLeaks Diplomatic Cables: US State Department Secretly Funded Syria Opposition
 US Secretly Funded 
 Syrian Opposition 
wikileaks reveal
Apr 18, 2011 7:48 AM CDT

US Secretly Funded Syrian Opposition

Diplomatic cables show $6M went to one group

(Newser) - Newly released diplomatic cables show that the US State Department has secretly funded opposition groups in Syria, as well as a London-based satellite TV channel that offers anti-government programming. The cables, released by WikiLeaks, show that the State Department has given as much as $6 million since 2006 to the...

In Libya, Moammar Gadhafi's Forces Mount New Offensive on Ajdabiya; Meanwhile, 3 Killed in Syria
Gadhafi Forces Mount New Offensive on Ajdabiya
plus: 3 killed in syria
Apr 17, 2011 3:44 PM CDT

Gadhafi Forces Mount New Offensive on Ajdabiya

'We don't really know who is holding what': rebel fighter

(Newser) - Moammar Gadhafi's forces shelled the eastern edge of Ajdabiya today, bringing the fight to the front-line rebel town that has been the scene of fierce fighting in recent weeks. Rebel forces fired back with rockets and no government forces entered the city, said a rebel fighter. Rebels acknowledged the...

Big Syria Concession: Emergency Law Being Lifted

It's been a main demand of protesters

(Newser) - Syria's president said today the emergency laws that have been in effect for nearly 50 years will be lifted—a key demand by a monthlong protest movement that has posed the most serious challenge yet to the regime. The big question: Whether it will appease protesters or encourage them...

Secret Hand in Syria Crackdown: Iran

And it may soon help protesters in Bahrain, Yemen

(Newser) - Iran has a hand in the revolutions currently sweeping the rest of the Arab world. In Syria, Iran is secretly assisting President Bashar al-Assad to quell the pro-democracy demonstrations, US officials say. But in Bahrain and Yemen, Iran is looking to aid Shiite protesters, thus destabilizing the countries—both US...

Hosni Mubarak Denies Corruption; Protesters Killed in Egypt, Yemen, Syria

 Mubarak: 
 I Am Not 
 Corrupt 
more protesters killed
Apr 10, 2011 4:44 PM CDT

Mubarak: I Am Not Corrupt

As former president speaks out, more protesters are killed

(Newser) - Hosni Mubarak today gave his first public message since being ousted from the Egyptian presidency, defending himself and his family against “unjust” allegations of corruption. He agreed to cooperate with Egypt’s general prosecutor during the corruption investigation, but called the campaign against him “distortions, lies, and incitement,...

13 Protesters Killed in Syria, 2 in Yemen

Thousands also protest in Egypt's Tahrir Square

(Newser) - Friday continues to be a day of protest throughout the Arab world. The worst reported violence today came out of Syria, where witnesses say security forces opened fire with live ammunition and killed at least 13 protesters in the southern city of Daraa, reports the AP . The demonstrations mark the...

Syria Taps New PM, Will Form New Gov't

Adel Safar is Bashar Assad's latest attempt to quell protests

(Newser) - Syrian President Bashar Assad appointed former agriculture minister Adel Safar today as prime minister, and charged him with forming a new government in continuing overtures toward reform as the country struggles to put down a wave of anti-government protests. Safar is seen as a respectable figure in a government that...

Syrian President Blames 'Conspirators' for Protests

Thousands of people gather in streets to support him

(Newser) - Bashar al-Assad gave a major speech at parliament today blaming “conspirators” for the country’s wave of anti-government protests, as crowds outside sang his praises. “I belong to the Syrian people, and whoever belongs to the Syrian people will always keep his head high,” the Syrian president...

Syria's Cabinet Resigns Amid Unrest

President Bashar Assad expected to lift emergency law

(Newser) - Syria's Cabinet has stepped down, and President Bashar Assad accepted the resignation following a meeting today, according to state-run television. It's the latest concession by the government aimed at appeasing more than a week of mass protests. Assad is expected to address the nation in the next 24 hours to...

Syria Protests: Two Journalists Missing; Two US Citizens Detained; Security Forces Fire on Protesters
 Syria Frees Reuters Journalists 
UPDATED
Mar 28, 2011 10:44 AM CDT

Syria Frees Reuters Journalists

Plus: US citizens detained; security forces fire on protesters

(Newser) - Two journalist who went missing in Syria Saturday night have been released by Syrian authorities. The Beirut-based producer and cameraman work for Reuters television and traveled to Syria Thursday to cover the ongoing protests. An official says they were detained because they were filming "in an area where filming...

Syria Deploys Army as Protests Continue

Officials say 12 died in port city of Latakia

(Newser) - Syria's army was out in force today in Latakia, a port city scarred by unrest aimed at symbols of the government, which is struggling to put down an unprecedented nationwide outbreak of protest and dissent. President Bashar Assad's regime has responded by both fatally shooting protesters , and promising reform , and...

Syria Frees 260 Detainees as Protests Resume

Bashar al-Assad makes his biggest concession yet

(Newser) - Syria remains on the brink: Protesters were back on the streets in several cities, a day after security forces opened fire on them, reports CNN . Human rights activists say 25 people were killed yesterday, though the numbers are unconfirmed. President Bashar al-Assad, meanwhile, released 260 political prisoners in his biggest...

Syrian Troops Open Fire on Protesters

Witnesses say widespread demonstrations met with violence

(Newser) - Syria's unrest is taking a turn for the worse. Violence erupted today as troops opened fire on protesters in several cities and pro- and anti-government crowds clashed on the tense streets of the capital, witnesses said. Soldiers shot at demonstrators in the restive southern city of Daraa after crowds set...

Syria Makes Concessions, but Protesters Unswayed

Foes call for mass demonstrations tomorrow

(Newser) - The Syrian government pledged today to consider lifting some of the Mideast's most repressive laws in an attempt to stop a week-long uprising in a southern city from spreading and threatening its nearly 50-year rule. The promises were immediately rejected by many activists who called for demonstrations around the country...

Six Syrian Protesters Killed in Mosque Raid: Report

But state TV says 4 died in gang attack

(Newser) - Some people definitely died today in the southern Syrian city of Dara, but how it happened depends on who you talk to. News agencies are reporting that six people were killed when Syrian security forces raided a mosque where protesters had taken refuge, the New York Times reports. But Syrian...

Syria Still Unscathed —but True Test Awaits

David Ignatius: If Assad delays reforms, he could suffer Mubarak's fate

(Newser) - Syria has reason to be worried about the Arab revolution sweeping its neighbors, writes David Ignatius in the Washington Post . After all, it "has an authoritarian regime dominated by a corrupt Baath Party—a relic of the age of dictators that is being swept away in so many other...

Syria Lifts 5-Year Facebook, YouTube Ban

'Appeasement' measure dumps 5-year shut-down

(Newser) - Syrian authorities are lifting a 5-year-old ban on Facebook, YouTube and other Internet sites in a move seen as an attempt to appease the public and stave off the kind unrest rocking Egypt. The country's state-owned ISP is in the process of unblocking sites including Twitter and Blogspot, although Wikipedia...

US Enemies Loving Unrest
 US Enemies Loving Unrest 
Feb 4, 2011 9:58 AM CST

US Enemies Loving Unrest

Iran, Syria see US allies weakening

(Newser) - Iran, Syria, and other members of the self-proclaimed “resistance bloc” are delighted by the unrest sweeping through the Arab world—since it’s so far affected primarily US allies like Egypt and Jordan, the Wall Street Journal observes. The unrest “proved that the global arrogance’s era of...

Syrian Leader: You Won't See Protests Here

Syria is more stable than Egypt or Tunisia, says Bashar al-Assad

(Newser) - Syria's strongman leader says the protests in Egypt, Tunisia, and Yemen are ushering in a "new era" in the Middle East—but not in his country. You won't be seeing any mass protests on the streets of Damascus, Bashar al-Assad tells the Wall Street Journal , because his government has...

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