Russia said it was surprised that the United States was backing an "odious" resolution at the UN Human Rights Council condemning the Syrian regime's use of foreign fighters, saying it undermined peace efforts.   "To my huge astonishment, we have learnt that apart from the...

 Awakened by the sound of gunfire, Ahmad could hear the armed men knocking on his brother's door, shouting insults and calling the family "dogs". Ahmad's sister-in-law said the gunmen told her husband to "bow to your god, Bashar" -- the Syrian president. She and her husband and...

,  Friday, May 24, 2013 Smoke and fire rises after explosives were dropped by a Syrian government warplane in Yabroud near Damascus, Syria, Monday May 20, 2013. The Syrian regime claims there is no civil war in the country but that the army is fighting foreign-backed terrorists...

The leader of the Lebanese Shia militant Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallah, has promised his supporters they will prevail in Syria, where they are backing President Bashar al-Assad. "This battle is ours... and I promise you victory," he said in a TV address. Syrian rebels in the...