Syrian army troops and their allies, backed by Russia n jets, launched an attack on rebel-held towns north of the city of Homs on Thursday, Reuters and local activists said. The Russian air strikes hit targets around the town of Talbiseh and the villages of Teir Malla, Dar...

Islamic State militants battled rival insurgent groups on Wednesday north of the city of Aleppo, where officials say the Syrian army is preparing an offensive of its own backed by Iranian soldiers and Russian jets. A rebel fighter and a group monitoring the war said Islamic State...

Support for German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives has dropped to 38 percent, its lowest level since June 2014, as a dispute in her bloc over how to deal with a record inflow of refugees takes its toll, a poll showed on Wednesday. Merkel and Horst Seehofer, the leader of her...

On the campaign trail ahead of Egypt's parliamentary elections, the heavily bearded leader of the ultra-conservative Nour Party praises Islam's Prophet Mohammad for cleaning up politics, and promises to do the same. In reality, Younes Makhyoun has more pressing priorities --...