Kerry holds talks with Israeli and Palestinian officials

JERUSALEM - US Secretary of State John Kerry Thursday separately began meetings with Israeli and Palestinian officials but appeared doubtful about his success on getting the two warring sides back to peace negotiations. This is Kerry's fourth trip to the Middle East in as many months of his assuming the office of the top US diplomat. He was been trying to revive a peace process that has been ...

Meeting of Syrian opposition leaders begins in Istanbul

ISTANBUL - Syrian opposition leaders Thursday began their three-day meeting in this Turkish capital city to decide on their participation in talks aimed at end the civil war in the country. As the meeting began in Istanbul a prominent Syrian figure in the opposition proposed a transition plan for the country that requires President Bashar al-Assad to hand over power to a senior aide and ...

Foreign policy impotence gripping U.S.

In an article published May 15, 2013, American historical social scientist Immanuel Wallerstein wrote, "Nothing illustrates more the limitations of Western power than the internal controversy its elites are having in public about what the United States in particular and western European states should be doing about the civil war in Syria." Those limitations are palpable in both language and ...

Syrias Civil War Fuels Violence in Iraq

Ominous ties are emerging between skyrocketing sectarian violence in Iraq and Syria's civil war. Analysts say al-Qaida-linked militants are flowing back and forth from both countries and are seeking to use religious differences to bring down the government, not only in Damascus, but also in Baghdad. Iraqis are witnessing the worst violence to rock their country in five years. ...

Resistance of Syria rebels surprises Hezbollah

An-Nahar Daily reported on Friday that 18-year-old Hassan, a Baalbeck native and a Hezbollah fighter, spent three days fighting with the party alongside the Syrian regime in the border town of al-Qusayr. Hassan who was notified of his father’s death in the battles upon his arrival to his hometown said that Hezbollah ...