Besides facing torture, many prisoners in Syrian jails are subjected to pay huge bribes in exchange of their freedom, say ex-prisoners. “My family paid a bribe of 500,000 Syrian liras (about $10,000) to one of the members of the Assad family for my release,” Um Hisam, 50, told Anadolu...

Dozens of powerful Afghans resumed talks with the Taliban on Monday in Doha, where a possible ceasefire is on the table along with key issues such as women's rights. Stakes are high for the talks which follow a week of US-Taliban negotiations with both sides eyeing a resolution to the...

Syrian President Bashar Assad has replaced some heads of influential security agencies, including Maj. Gen. Jamil Hassan, who has headed the powerful Air Force Intelligence Directorate since 2009, pro-government Syrian pages on social media reported Sunday. No reason was given for the...

Qusayr, a once bustling commercial hub in western Syria, has not seen any fighting since government troops, with the help of Lebanon’s powerful Iran-backed Hezbollah group, drove out Sunni Muslim rebels six years ago. Large sections of the city lie in ruin and of the thousands who fled...