On Nov. 13, 1970, a young air force officer from the coastal hills of Syria launched a bloodless coup. It was the latest in a succession of military takeovers since independence from France in 1946, and there was no reason to think it would be the last. Yet 50 years later, Hafez Assad’s...

Israel and Lebanon resumed U.S.-mediated talks on Wednesday over their disputed Mediterranean Sea border, that has held up hydrocarbon exploration in the potentially gas-rich area, a source and Lebanon’s state news agency said. The longtime foes held three rounds of talks last month...

Syrian President Bashar al Assad on Wednesday blamed U.S. sanctions and pressure on the United Nations and Syria’s neighbours for the reticence of more than 5 million refugees who fled the conflict there to return. “There are many hurdles,” Assad said, citing U.S. sanctions at the...

The Hezbollah member convicted of the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese premier Rafik Hariri should receive a life sentence, even though he remains at large, prosecutors said Tuesday. Salim Ayyash was found guilty in absentia of murder by a UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon in the...