Syria Topics

Democracy Now! stories, posts and pages that relate to Syria

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  • Syria-refugees

    Report from Turkey-Syria Border: Syrian Refugees Claim "Horrific Carnage" in Besieged Aleppo

    Several neighborhoods have reportedly been reduced to rubble as the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad wages a massive ground assault to retake control of Aleppo. According to activists, more than 20,000 people, mostly unarmed civilians, have died in the last 17 months of fighting, and tens of thousands have fled the country. On Thursday, almost 2,000 people reached neighboring Turkey as refugee flows continue to rise. About a quarter...
    Aug 10, 2012 | Story
  • Syria_tanks

    Charles Glass: With Annan's Exit & Influx of Foreign Arms, Syria's Violence "Seems the Only Way Out"

    The U.N.-Arab League special envoy to Syria, Kofi Annan, has announced his resignation after failing to bring an end to more than a year of violence. Both sides of the conflict have faced new accusations of committing atrocities this week amidst escalating clashes. We discuss the situation in Syria and the likely impact of Annan’s resignation with Charles Glass, former ABC News chief Middle East correspondent and author of the soon to be...
    Aug 03, 2012 | Story
  • Syria_guns2

    Back from Syria, Reporter David Enders Says Assad Regime Crumbling to "Grassroots Rebellion"

    As the battle for Damascus rages on, we’re joined by reporter David Enders, special correspondent for McClatchy, based in Beirut, Lebanon. He has been to Syria four times this year, most recently in June, and is returning there shortly. "The [Syrian] government [is] crumbling under the weight of a massive rebellion. It simply can’t put it down," Enders says. "Without the aid of the international community, Syrians are...
    Jul 19, 2012 | Story
  • Assad_book

    Assad Biographer: After Initial Hopes of Reform, Syrian Ruler Has Succumbed to Delusions of Power

    In the wake of Wednesday’s bomb blast that killed top Syrian officials, we continue our Syria coverage with David Lesch, author of the biography, "The New Lion of Damascus: Bashar al-Asad and Modern Syria," as well as the forthcoming book, "Syria: The Fall of the House of Assad." Lesch is a professor of Middle East history at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. "[Assad is] someone, I think, who started out...
    Jul 19, 2012 | Story
  • Syrian_activist

    Syrian Activist in Hiding: "We're Not Looking for Intervention, We're Looking for Support"

    Syria’s 16-month uprising has entered uncharted territory after Wednesday’s bombing that killed three members of President Bashar al-Assad’s inner circle, including his defense secretary, interior minister and brother-in-law. Fighting between government troops and opposition rebels has been reported across Damascus, including locations within sight of the presidential palace. We’re joined from Syria by an activist who requested...
    Jul 19, 2012 | Story
  • Assad_general

    Bomber Strikes Syrian Regime in Damascus, Killing Assad's Defense Minister, Brother-in-Law

    A suicide bomber has struck a meeting of top Syrian officials in Damascus, killing Syria’s defense minister and the brother-in-law of President Bashar-al-Assad and dealing a major blow to the Assad regime. The defense minister, General Daoud Rajha, is the most senior government official to be killed since the Syrian uprising began 17 months ago. The bombing comes as the United Nations Security Council is set to vote today on a new measure...
    Jul 18, 2012 | Story
  • Syria_3

    Syrian Opposition Spokesperson: Any Transition Deal Should Entail Assad's Prosecution for War Crimes

    United Nations and Arab League envoy Kofi Annan met today with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the midst of worsening violence. Syria’s 16-month conflict has so far claimed more than 15,000 lives. Annan said today’s last-ditch attempt to salvage a peace effort ended with an agreement on how end the violence, but he did not disclose details. Earlier, he acknowledged his six-point peace plan had failed to halt the fighting between...
    Jul 09, 2012 | Story
  • Button-syria-debate

    Is Syria in a Civil War? Journalist Patrick Seale Debates Activist Rafif Jouejati on a Just Response

    Has a full-blown civil war broken out in Syria? Hervé Ladsous, the U.N. under-secretary general for peacekeeping operations, became the first senior U.N. official to make the assertion on Tuesday amid worsening violence across the country. The U.S. meanwhile is accusing Russia of arming the Syrian military while Saudi Arabia and Qatar are sending anti-tank missiles to the Syrian opposition through Turkey with the Obama administration’s...
    Jun 13, 2012 | Story
  • Bassel_big

    Syrian Filmmaker Who Appeared on Democracy Now! Killed in Homs While Training Local Activists

    Democracy Now! is saddened to report that one of our past guests, Bassel Shahade, was killed last Monday while he worked on a documentary and trained media activists in Homs, Syria.
    Jun 04, 2012 | Web Exclusive
  • Button-syria

    Veteran Mideast Journalist Charles Glass on Syria's Violence & the Prospect of Military Intervention

    The United States and 11 other countries have formally expelled Syrian diplomats following a massacre of more than 100 people in the village of Houla. U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan now says Syria has reached a "tipping point" after more than a year of conflict. We’re joined by Charles Glass, an award-winning journalist, author and broadcaster specializing in the Middle East. Glass reported from Syria last month for the New...
    May 30, 2012 | Story