Syria war Israel warns of more strikes

Times Of India - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Syria to rein the militia in, highlighting the risks of a wider regional conflict if planned peace talks fail. Activists said it was the fiercest fighting in Syria's two year-old civil war involving Hezbollah, a Shi'ite group backed by Iran which they said appeared to be helping ...

Will we reach a tipping point with Syria

MSNBC - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Shibley Telhami, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and author of the upcoming book "The World Through Arab Eyes: Arab Public Opinion and the Reshaping of the Middle East," and MSNBC Contributor Rula Jebreal talk with MSNBC's Craig Melvin about the ongoing conflict in Syria and Secretary of State John Kerry's upcoming trip to the Middle East and ...

Outlook dim as Syria diplomacy gathers force

Baltimore Sun - Sunday 19th May, 2013

John Kerry is expected to explain the plans for talks at a meeting in Jordan on Wednesday of the "Friends of Syria" club of countries seeking Assad's downfall, many of which are skeptical of the peace initiative. Syria's opposition will meet on Thursday in Istanbul to announce its stance, and the Arab League's Syria committee will also meet on Thursday in Cairo at the ...

The Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov confirmed on Wednesday that in conversations with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry they came to an agreement to organize a new international conference on the conflict in Syria. Moscow and Washington agree

Pravda - Sunday 19th May, 2013

The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, confirmed on Wednesday (8th) that in conversations with U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, they came to an agreement to organize a new international conference on the conflict in Syria. Moscow and Washington agree that the meeting will take place in May in Geneva with the participation of both parties Moscow and Washington agree that the meeting ...

How The Syria Debate Is Playing Out In The Middle East

NPR - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Copyright © 2013 NPR. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required. RACHEL MARTIN, HOST: That concern is reflected in the Arab media. Ramez Maluf, head of the Department of Journalism at Balamand University in Lebanon, has been tracking that reaction. He joined us from our bureau in Beirut. And I asked him how invested people in the ...

Syrian Troops Target Key Rebel-Held Town

NPR - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Syrians inspect Saturday the rubble of buildings damaged by government airstrikes in Qusair, Syria. The image was provided by Qusair Lens, and was authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting. Dozens of people are dead in heavy fighting around the Syrian rebel-held city of Qusair where troops loyal to President Bashar Assad are making a strong push. News reports say as ...

Iranian Candidate Hopes To Take International Viewpoint Home

NPR - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Copyright © 2013 NPR. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required. RACHEL MARTIN, HOST: This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Rachel Martin. We begin this hour in the Middle East, first Iran. This week, the religiously based Guardian Council is expected to announce the final roster of candidates in that country's ...

Militants kill 10 Iraq policemen in checkpoint attacks

One News - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Sectarian violence flares in Iraq Militants have killed at least 10 Iraqi policemen in a series of attacks on checkpoints in the West of the country, police and local officials said. Sectarian tensions in Iraq have been amplified by the conflict in neighbouring Syria, where mostly Sunni rebels are fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad who is backed by Shi'ite Iran. There was no ...

UAE tops Middle East with $10 billion in tourism receipts

eTN - Sunday 19th May, 2013

The UAE has topped the Middle East region for international tourism receipts in 2012, according to data released by the UN's World Tourism Organisation. The UAE was ranked 31st in global list with receipts of about $10bn, just ahead of Saudi Arabia which was placed 35th, with revenues of $7.4bn. Middle East tourism receipts totalled $46.7bn last year, the Arabian Business quoting UNWTO ...

Health Ministry Lebanon has excellent health sector

The Daily Star - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Lebanon has one of the most outstanding health sectors in the Arab world. The comments were made by Mohammad Abu Haidar, a representative for the caretaker health minister, during a conference at ...

Israel demands French TV change 13-year-old report on boys death

One News - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Israel strikes open up 'all possibilities' - Syrian minister Israel has demanded a French television station correct a report from nearly 13 years ago which helped fuel anger across the world and ignite a bloody uprising against the Jewish state. Twelve-year-old Mohammed al-Dura and his father, Jamal, were filmed crouching in terror by a wall in the Gaza Strip in September 2000, ...

Kerry heads to Middle East focus on Syria

MSNBC - Sunday 19th May, 2013

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will travel to the Middle East this week to meet with leaders in the area. It is expected that Syria will be a major point of discussion. Shibley Telhami of the Brookings Institute and journalist Rula Jebreal join MSNBC with ...

Deke Sharon Makes A Cappella Cool Again

NPR - Sunday 19th May, 2013

On how he got involved in a cappella: "Well, it is easy to say I was the kid in the back of the class making funny noises like Robin Williams, but I was actually the kid sitting in the front row, snotty and sucking up to the teacher. So, all of these sounds were developed slowly over time. I think all people who sing a cappella sing along with the radio, but they don't sing the melody, ...

PM Israel has no ‘favorite’ in Syrian civil war

Jerusalem Post - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Israel is not taking sides in the Syrian civil war, but will act if necessary to prevent game-changing weapons from being transferred to Hezbollah, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said on Sunday.Speaking at the outset of the weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said Israel was closely monitoring the developments and changes in Syria, and was "prepared for any ...

Tunisia PM links Ansar al-Sharia Islamists to terror

The Daily Star - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Ansar al-Sharia that fought street battles in the capital with security forces on Sunday of being "involved in terrorism". "Ansar al-Sharia is an illegal organisationit has ties to and is involved in terrorism," Larayedh told state television. The Islamists clashed earlier with security forces ...

Pertamina eyeing oil and gas acquisitions in Oman

AME Info - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Indonesia's PT Pertamina has said it is considering the acquisition of an oil and gas asset in Oman, as the energy firm seeks to boost production at home and overseas, Muscat Daily has reported. State-owned Pertamina is currently in talks with Omani officials for the takeover of an oil and gas asset, expecting to seal an agreement by year's end, said the firm's chief executive, ...

Stocks to Soccer Add Up for Qataris Needing $200 Billion at Home

Yahoo - Sunday 19th May, 2013

After paying for stakes in European companies, landmarks in London, uprisings in the Middle East and a soccer title in France, Qatar may be getting ready to go home. The $60 billion-a-year spree by the world's richest country, dominated by holdings in companies such as British ...

The Spreading Consequences of Syria’s Civil War

The New Yorker - Sunday 19th May, 2013

In March, 2012, I visited Hatay, a region in the south of Turkey that borders Syria, to report on Syrian refugees. The conflict in Syria had been in full force for a year then, and the border remained open. Syrians poured into Hatay’s camps and cities, moving their families into tents or—if they were lucky or connected or had a little bit of money—into apartments. Work had ...

Syrian army Hezbollah kill over 30 in border town

Jerusalem Post - Sunday 19th May, 2013

AMMAN - Syrian troops supported by Hezbollah operatives launched an offensive to retake a major town near Lebanon from rebels on Sunday, the heaviest fighting yet involving Lebanese armed group, opposition activists said.At least 32 people were killed when rebel fighters clashed with mechanized Syrian army units and Hezbollah guerrillas in nine points in and around the town of Qusair, 10 km (six ...

Bahrain slams claims about the non implementation of the BICI recommendations

Bahrain News Agency - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Manama, May 19 (BNA)--Bahrain's Attorney General slammed as untrue a newspaper report that claimed that recommendations by a fact-finding panel on freedom of expression had been ignored by the state's legal authorities. "The report by the local daily about the non-implementation of the recommendations by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) to drop the ...

Palestinian kids swept up in wave of Israeli arrests

MSNBC - Sunday 19th May, 2013

Ahmed Jawabreh, 14, was arrested in the middle of the night for allegedly throwing stones at Israeli soldiers in the West Bank refugee camp where he lives and wasn't released for another 18 days. His was only one of a recent wave of arrests of Palestinian children by Israeli authorities, human rights groups ...

Bahrains Rights Britains Failure

Human Rights Watch - Sunday 19th May, 2013

, claimed that "so-called human rights organisations" are "largely administered by ex-ideologists and even terrorists". It continued: "As much as beasts cannot be left to roam freely, so in human society the feral element’s freedom should be under control." In fact, it is well documented ...