middle east
After Assad’s cruelty, Syrians seek dead loved ones – and closure BBC Syrians have come to the hospital in Damascus looking to find missing loved ones On a painted wall outside Damascus’s Mustahed Hospital are photographs of the faces of dead men. A constantly changing crowd of people examine them, squinting against the low winter … Read more
Israeli boy killed in Palestinian gun attack on bus in West Bank A 12-year-old Israeli boy has been killed in a Palestinian shooting attack on a bus in the south of the occupied West Bank, Israeli authorities say. The Israeli military said the gunman opened fire at the bus in the al-Khader Junction area as … Read more
Israeli strikes kill people guarding aid lorries, Gaza medics say At least 35 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza, including 12 guarding incoming aid lorries, local medics and the Hamas-run Civil Defence authority say. Seven guards were killed in a strike in Rafah while protecting aid lorries from violent armed theft, which … Read more
Where next for Iran now its ‘Axis of Resistance’ is shattered? Getty Images Amid the shattered glass and trampled flags, posters of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei lie ripped on the floor of the Iranian embassy in Damascus. There are torn pictures too of the former leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallah, who … Read more
US man found wandering near Damascus after months in Syrian prison A US man, detained for months in a Syrian prison after entering the country on foot, has described being freed by hammer-wielding men as rebels overthrew the regime of Bashar al-Assad. The man – who later identified himself as Travis Timmerman to the BBC’s … Read more
Syria rebel leader vows to shut down notorious Assad prisons Reuters A woman looks for relatives after thousands of prisoners were released from Saydnaya prison Syrian rebel forces have said they plan to close the notoriously harsh prisons run by ousted president Bashar al-Assad and hunt those involved in the killing or torture of detainees. … Read more
Russian ships move from Syria base amid doubts over future Getty Images Tartous naval facility has been a key projection of Russian naval power in the region Russian naval vessels appear to have temporarily left their main port in Syria, satellite images reviewed by BBC Verify show, amid continuing uncertainty about Moscow’s military future in … Read more
Israel seizing on Syria chaos to strike military assets Reuters Israeli troops have taken up positions on Mt Hermon, also known as Jabal al-Sheikh After launching hundreds of air strikes on Syrian military assets and seizing positions including the summit of a mountain with an uninterrupted sightline to the capital Damascus, Israel appears to be … Read more
BBC sees crowd surge over rumoured execution of Assad henchman Decades of rule by the Assad family came to an end over the weekend following the overthrow of president Bashar al-Assad. But as the BBC’s Jeremy Bowen explains, there are now demands for retribution from Syrians, with some calling for the public execution of those … Read more
Syria rebels burn tomb of Bashar al-Assad’s father Hafez Syrian rebel fighters have destroyed the tomb of late president Hafez al-Assad, father of ousted president Bashar, in the family’s hometown. Videos verified by the BBC showed armed men chanting as they walked around the burning mausoleum in Qardaha, in the north-west of the coastal Latakia … Read more