BEIRUT — Abdullah Mohammed would do anything for his daughter, even forcing himself to laugh with her at the sound of bombs to help her overcome her fear. In Idlib, that’s a lot of laughter. The province in northwestern Syria is the last opposition-held stronghold in the war-ravaged country. It...
UN: Thousands Fleeing Syrian Offensive, Kids Dying in Cold
UNITED NATIONS — Hundreds of thousands of people fleeing a Russian-backed Syrian offensive are being squeezed into ever smaller areas near Turkey’s border “under horrendous conditions” in freezing temperatures that are killing babies and young children, the U.N. humanitarian chief said Wednesday. Mark Lowcock told the U.N. Security Council that...
UN Appeals for Humanitarian Corridors in Northwestern Syria
BEIRUT — The United Nations human rights chief urged Syrian government forces and their allies Tuesday to allow safe corridors in conflict areas in northwestern Syria, where a military offensive has unleashed a massive wave of fleeing civilians in one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes in the long civil war....
UN Says 140,000 Displaced in 3 Days Amid Syrian Offensive
BEIRUT — Over 140,000 Syrians have been displaced in the last three days alone by violence in the country's northwest, bringing the total of those uprooted in a Syrian government offensive against the last opposition stronghold to over 800,000, the United Nations said Thursday. The U.N. said at least 60%...
Syria: US Troops Open Fire on Locals in Northeast, Killing 1
DAMASCUS — A Syrian was killed and another was wounded when government supporters attacked American troops and tried to block their way as their convoy drove through an army checkpoint in northeastern Syria, prompting a rare clash, state media and activists reported. The state-run media said the killed man was...
Turkey Sends More Troops, Tanks to Syria Amid Idlib Assault
BEIRUT — Several Turkish armored vehicles and tanks entered rebel-controlled northwestern Syria early on Friday, the latest reinforcements sent in by Ankara amid a Syrian government offensive that this week brought the two countries' troops into a rare direct confrontation. The Syrian government, backed by its ally Russia, has kept...
UN Chief Warns 'A Wind of Madness Is Sweeping the Globe'
UNITED NATIONS — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Tuesday that “a wind of madness is sweeping the globe,” pointing to escalating conflicts from Libya and Yemen to Syria and beyond. At a wide-ranging news conference, he said, “All situations are different but there is a feeling of growing instability and...
At the Oscars, 'The Cave' Aims to Provide Hope to Syria
NEW YORK — Home is a complicated notion for Feras Fayyad, the director of the Oscar-nominated Syrian documentary “The Cave.” His family home in Syria is believed to have been taken just weeks ago as President’s Bashar al-Assad’s Russian-backed forces seized the area. His family is living in temporary housing...
Top Commander Sees Increased Iran Threat in Afghanistan
KABUL, Afghanistan — There has been an increase in Iranian activity in Afghanistan that poses a risk to American and coalition troops there, a senior U..S. commander said, as the threat from Tehran continues to churn across the Middle East. Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, the top U.S. commander for the...
Syrian Troops Capture Key Town in Rebel-Held Idlib Province
DAMASCUS, Syria — Syrian government forces captured one of the largest and most strategic rebel-held towns in the country's northwest, the Syrian military and opposition activists said Wednesday, part of a Russian-backed military assault that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people fleeing to safer areas. The town of Maaret...