The capture by Syrian pro-government forces of the strategic Qusayr region is a major victory for President Bashar al-Assad, who is now better placed than ever if a US-Russian plan for peace talks materialises. The nearly three-week battle for Qusayr in central Syria exposed the central role...

   European   banks   will be able to open branches and accounts in   Syria   for use by the opposition, European Union governments decided on Friday, relaxing economic sanctions to help  Free Syrian Army  fighting al-Assad regime....

  Zaman-Alwasl, exclusively,  summarized for Its readers an important and detailed study on the Syrian conflict prepared by the Congressional Research Service last month. The newspaper will publish the study in series of articles.   ''The...

  Syria's foreign minister laid out a hard line Wednesday, saying Bashar Assad will remain president at least until elections in 2014 and might seek another term, conditions that will make it difficult for the opposition to agree to U.N.-sponsored talks on ending the civil war. Any deal...