Syrian civil war

A boy cries after government airstrikes in the town of Ariha, in Idlib province, Syria, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020. Syrian government warplanes struck a market and an industrial area Wednesday in the last territory in the hands of rebel groups in the country's northwest, killing at least 15 people, opposition activists said. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

UN report lays out agonies faced by Syrian children amid war

Jan. 16, 2020 6:44 AM EST

GENEVA (AP) — In Syria's civil war, girls as young as nine have been raped and forced into sexual slavery. Boys have been tortured, forced into military training and ordered to carry out killings in public. Children have been targeted by sniper fire and used as bargaining chips to extract ransoms. Those...

This photo provided by the Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows Syrian White Helmet civil defense workers extinguish a burning car that was hit by Syrian government airstrikes, in Idlib province, Syria, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020. Syrian government warplanes struck a market and an industrial area on Wednesday in the last territory in the hands of rebel groups in the country's northwest, killing at least 15 people, opposition activists said. (Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets via AP)

Groups: Syrian planes strike market in rebel area, 15 dead

Jan. 15, 2020 2:40 PM EST

BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian government warplanes struck a market and an industrial area Wednesday in the last territory in the hands of rebel groups in the country's northwest, killing at least 15 people, opposition activists said. A new cessation of hostilities agreement between Russia and Turkey, who support...

A man pulls a tanker trailer as civilians flee a Syrian military offensive in Idlib province on the main road near Hazano, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2019. Syrian forces launched a wide ground offensive last week into the northwestern province of Idlib, which is dominated by al-Qaida-linked militants. The United Nations estimates that some 60,000 people have fled from the area, heading south, after the bombings intensified earlier this month. (AP Photo/Ghaith al-Sayed)

Syria airstrikes kill 10 in rebel-held area despite truce

Jan. 11, 2020 11:10 AM EST

BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian government warplanes struck several rebel-held areas in the country's northwest on Saturday, killing at least 10 people and wounding dozens, opposition activist said. A cease-fire supposedly went into effect Thursday, according to Russia's Defense Ministry. But Turkey's Defense...

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, center, visit the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020. Putin has traveled to Syria to meet with President Bashar Assad, a key Iranian ally. The rare visit Tuesday comes amid soaring tensions between Iran and the United States following the U.S. drone strike last week that killed a top Iranian general who led forces supporting Assad in Syria's civil war. (Alexei Nikolsky/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russia scores victory for ally Syria in UN vote cutting aid

Jan. 10, 2020 10:48 PM EST

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Russia scored a victory for its close ally Syria on Friday, using its veto threat to force the U.N. Security Council to adopt a resolution significantly reducing the delivery of cross-border humanitarian aid and cutting off critical medical assistance to over one million Syrians in...

Truckloads of civilians flee a Syrian military offensive in Idlib province on the main road near Hazano, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2019. Syrian forces launched a wide ground offensive last week into the northwestern province of Idlib, which is dominated by al-Qaida-linked militants. The United Nations estimates that some 60,000 people have fled from the area, heading south, after the bombings intensified earlier this month. (AP Photo/Ghaith al-Sayed)

Airstrikes hit rebel-held Syrian town despite new cease-fire

Jan. 10, 2020 8:49 AM EST

BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian warplanes bombed a major rebel stronghold in the country's northwest on Friday, less than 24 hours after a cease-fire went into effect there, opposition activists said. Nevertheless, activists reported an overall drop in violence in Syria's Idlib province compared to the past three...

FILE - In this Dec. 26, 2018, file photo, members of the military wait outside facilities where President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump are visiting at Ain al-Asad air base, Iraq. Iran said Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020, it has launched

Iran strikes back at US with missile attack at bases in Iraq

Jan. 8, 2020 12:18 AM EST

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran struck back at the United States early Wednesday for killing a top Revolutionary Guards commander, firing a series of ballistic missiles at two military bases in Iraq housing American troops in a major escalation between the two longtime foes. It was Iran's most direct assault on...

This image released by the Syrian Presidency shows Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, meeting with Syrian President Bashar Assad, center, in Damascus, Syria on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020. Putin's visit is the second to the war-torn country where his troops have been fighting alongside Syrian government forces since 2015. (Syrian Presidency via AP)

Russia's Putin visits Syria to meet Assad, a key Iran ally

Jan. 7, 2020 5:04 PM EST

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin traveled to Damascus on Tuesday for a meeting with President Bashar Assad, a rare visit that comes amid soaring tensions between Iran and United States following the U.S. drone strike that killed a top Iranian general. While the official statements...

FILE - In this Nov. 22, 2013 file photo, Iraqi and Lebanese Shiite fighters from a group called the Hussein Brigade, loyal to Syria's President Bashar Assad, use a helmet to draw a sniper into view during clashes against the Sunni-dominated Free Syrian Army in the town of Hejeira, Syria, outside the capital Damascus. As Iran's frontman in Syria since 2011, Qassem Soleimani, Commander of Iran's Quds Force, brought in and organized thousands of Shiite militiamen from outside Syria to back President Bashar Assad's overstretched military, providing firepower and skills. (AP Photo/Jaber al-Helo, File)

Iranian general transformed Syria's war in Assad's favor

Jan. 7, 2020 7:37 AM EST

BEIRUT (AP) — When Syrian President Bashar Assad made a rare visit to Tehran last year, the powerful Revolutionary Guard commander Qassem Soleimani was there to greet him, along with Iran's supreme leader and president. Iran's foreign minister wasn't, and he resigned in protest at being excluded from talks...

A boy carries a portrait of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in the U.S. airstrike in Iraq, prior to the Friday prayers in Tehran, Iran, Friday Jan. 3, 2020. Iran has vowed

Iran vows revenge for US attack that killed powerful general

Jan. 3, 2020 10:07 PM EST

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iran promised to seek revenge for a U.S. airstrike near Baghdad's airport that killed the mastermind of its interventions across the Middle East, and the U.S. said Friday that it was sending thousands more troops to the region as tensions soared in the wake of the targeted killing. The...

A woman mourns in a demonstration over the U.S. airstrike in Iraq that killed Iranian Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Tehran, Iran, Jan. 3, 2020. Iran has vowed

Cycle of revenge: What's next after killing of Iran general?

Jan. 3, 2020 4:41 PM EST

JERUSALEM (AP) — The unprecedented killing of Iran's top general in a U.S. airstrike in Iraq has sent shockwaves across the Middle East, with Iran and its allies vowing revenge amid fears of an all-out war. But while they have vast arsenals and are within striking distance of U.S. troops deployed in Syria,...

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