Lots of dignitaries but no real fireworks — only electronic flash — as the Asian Games open

HANGZHOU, China (AP) — The opening ceremony of the Asian Games on Saturday in China offered all the staples of a major international sports event. Dignitaries greeted General Secretary Xi Jinping, fans packed the 80,000-seat Olympic Sports Center Stadium in Hangzhou to capacity,...

Leaders of Syria and China announce strategic partnership as part of Asian Games diplomacy

BEIJING (AP) — China and Syria announced the formation of a strategic partnership on Friday as Chinese leader Xi Jinping kicked off a series of diplomatic meetings ahead of the upcoming Asian Games. Xi met Syrian President Bashar Assad in the southern Chinese city of Hangzhou,...

Syrian President Bashar Assad is in China on his first visit since the beginning of war in Syria

BEIJING (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad arrived in China on Thursday on his first visit to the country since the start of Syria's 12-year conflict, one in which Beijing has been one of his main backers. China’s Foreign Ministry said Assad would join other foreign leaders...

Syrian President Bashar Assad arrives in China on his first visit since the beginning of the war in Syria

Lawsuit by Islamic rights group says US terror watchlist woes continue even after names are removed

WASHINGTON (AP) — Mohamed Khairullah, the longest serving Muslim mayor in the U.S., thought he had finally resolved years of airport searches and border interrogations in 2021, when his name appeared to be removed from the government's secret terror watchlist. Then, earlier this...

Dozens of Syrians are among the missing in catastrophic floods in Libya, a war monitor says

BEIRUT (AP) — A Syrian dentist, a confectioner who made mouthwatering Arabic sweets, a carpenter. Syrians from all walks of life had left their war-torn country for the Libyan city of Derna over the past years, looking for work and better opportunities. Now, dozens...

UAE police say they have seized $1 billion worth of Captagon amphetamines hidden in doors

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Police in Dubai seized 86 million tablets of the amphetamine known as Captagon hidden in a shipment of doors and decorative building panels, authorities said Thursday, estimating its street value at just over $1 billion. The bust comes as sales of...

3 wounded in southern Syria after shots fired at protesters at ruling party's local headquarters

BEIRUT (AP) — Security guards from the Syrian president's Baath party on Wednesday fired shots at protesters trying to raid its local headquarters in southern Syria, wounding at least three people, activists said. The incident marked a major escalation in anti-government protests...

UN envoy urges donor support for battered Syria facing an economic crisis

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — The United Nations special envoy for Syria Sunday urged donors not to reduce their funding as the war-torn country's economic crisis spirals. Syrian President Bashar Assad’s decision last month to double public sector wages and pensions further skyrocketed...

US-backed Kurdish fighters say battles with tribesmen in eastern Syria that killed dozens have ended

BEIRUT (AP) — A U.S.-backed Syrian force declared its operations in eastern Syria completed Friday after almost two weeks of fighting with local tribesmen left dozens of people dead. The Syrian Democratic Forces said the fighting ended with its recapture of areas in Deir el-Zour...