Syrian forces kill 11 people during mass protests

rces shot dead at least 11 people during mass protests on Friday against President Bashar al-Assad, rights activists and witnesses said.

Five civilians were killed overnight in Homs, (more…)

In Syria-Qatar rift, a ’shrewdly calculated divorce’

By closing its embassy in Damascus and calling back its ambassador to Doha, Qatar is contributing to Syria’s growing international isolation, says political scientist Karim Sader.

‘Bodies on the streets’ in Syrian crackdown

Human rights activists and residents of Homs, Syria’s third largest city, are reporting intense gunfire as security forces conduct raids and arrests.

A resident told the Reuters news agency by phone that the army fired at worshippers in eastern Khalidiya district as they left the Khaled Ibn al-Walid mosque (more…)

Qatar breaks Arab ranks over Syria

Qatar lived up to its reputation as a maverick in Middle Eastern politics this week by suspending the operations of its embassy in Damascus.

Ziadeh: Syrian revolution is “the revolution of YouTube”

If we call the Egyptian revolution “the revolution of Facebook,” we can say that the Syrian revolution is “the revolution of YouTube.”

Hearing Helen

“We need to be able to ask people what they mean when something like this comes up,” says Alicia Nails, a journalism instructor at Wayne State University

Should Anyone Listen To Walid Bey?

By Ghassan Karam
Walid Jumblatt cannot be taken seriously any longer. You just cannot tell whether he means any of the things that he speaks about or whether he is just trying to please who is on top.

Minister Harb calls for the abolishment of sectarian politics

Labor Minister Boutros Harb told the Voice of Lebanon radio station on Thursday that he requested President Michel Sleiman and Prime Minister Saad Hariri to launch a dialogue with Speaker Nabih Berri on his call to form a committee to eliminate political sectarianism. He said that such a discussion would help avoid domestic division.

As-Safir newspaper also reported on Thursday that Harb asked Berri before Wednesday’s cabinet session “to withdraw his proposal to forming a committee to abolish political sectarianism, because it is a contentious issue.”