Syria

President Obama, along with the European Union, called on Thursday for Syrian President Bashar al-Asad to step down. At the same time, the US announced severe economic and financial sanctions against Syria, essentially cutting the Syrian banking system off from access to US banks, and forbidding American citizens and firms from doing business with the […]

President Barack Obama is seriously considering calling publicly for Syrian President Bashar al-Asad to step down, according to press reports. He is said to be awaiting a briefing by Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who met with al-Asad for 6 hours on Tuesday, as Aljazeera English reports:. On Wednesday, the US slapped sanctions on Syria’s […]

Tens of thousands of Syrians demonstrated on August 5, the first Friday of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, amid regime crackdowns that were especially harsh in Hama, with some 13 killed there on Friday alone. Aljazeera English reports on the Syrian government’s severe repression, especially in Hama: AJE also reports on government’s rationale that […]

The United Nations Security Council on Wednesday issued a “presidential statement,” one step below a resolution, chiding the Syrian government for its violent repression of protests (but also condemning violence by the protesters, which is a little like complaining that Jack the Ripper’s victims tried to scratch him with their fingernails). The statement was hailed […]

Syria’s concerted military intervention against peacefully protesting crowds at the beginning of the fasting month of Ramadan has resulted in dozens of deaths, especially in the city of Hama, with about 100 dead in the past two days. The European Union responded to this provocation by upping sanctions against Damascus. During Ramadan, devout Muslims refrain […]