(Al Arabiya English)- Saudi’s decision to send troops to Syria in an attempt to bolster and toughen efforts against militants is “final,” the spokesman of the Saudi-led coalition force in Yemen announced on Thursday. Brig. Gen. Ahmed Al-Assiri, said that Riyadh is “ready” and will...

(The Guardian)- Syria’s national wealth, infrastructure and institutions have been “almost obliterated” by the “catastrophic impact” of nearly five years of conflict, a new report has found. Fatalities caused by war, directly and indirectly, amount to 470,000, according to the Syrian...

Michael Ignatieff and Leon Wieseltier (Washington Post)- As Russian planes decimate Aleppo, and hundreds of thousands of civilians in Syria’s largest city prepare for encirclement, blockade and siege — and for the starvation and the barbarity that will inevitably follow —...

The United States is pressing allies on Thursday to contribute more to a U.S.-led military campaign against Islamic State that it says must be accelerated, regardless of the fate of diplomatic efforts to end Syria's civil war. U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter is due to start...