Syrian army air raids kill at least 53 in rebel-held areas of Aleppo: monitor:
Fifteen children were among the dead, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
Activists: Syrian govt launches heavy air raids on ISIS-held Raqqa:
Syrian warplanes mounted around a dozen airstrikes on the ISIS-held city of Raqqa Thursday, activists reported, in an unusually heavy attack by government forces on an area also being targeted by a U.S.-led coalition.
Syrian army starts using new weapons from Russia: military source:
"New weapons are being delivered, and new types of weapons. The Syrian army is being trained in the use of these weapons. In fact, the army has started using some of these [weapon] types," the source said in response to a question about Russian support.
The Syrian Crisis is Part of a Proxy War Waged on Russia by the West:
Syria is just one zone of engagement in a much wider war against Russia that has been taking place since Putin started to stand up to the West.
U.S. training helped mold top Islamic State military commander:
Batirashvili's battlefield successes, including orchestrating the capture of Syria's Menagh Air Base after two years of failed attempts, "helped to legitimize ISIS in militant circles, including in the North Caucasus," Cecire said.
Few U.S.-Trained Syrians Still Fight ISIS, Senators Are Told:
Only four or five Syrian individuals trained by the United States military to confront the Islamic State remain in the fight, the head of the United States Central Command told a Senate panel on Wednesday, a bleak acknowledgment that the Defense Department's $500 million program to raise an army of Syrian fighters has gone nowhere.
John McCain calls Syria rebel training program by US a 'failure':
"There were only about 60 Syrian fighters that had been trained in our Train and Equip Program and reinserted. Can you tell us what the total number of trained fighters remains?" He replied: "It's a small number. The ones that are in the fight is we're talking, four or five."
Fact or fiction?
Russian helicopters spotted at Syria airfield: U.S. officials:
The United States has identified a small number of Russian helicopters at a Syrian airfield, U.S. officials said on Wednesday, the latest addition to what Washington believes is a significant Russian military buildup in the country.
Fact or fiction?
Russia moves into Syria to boost Assad, send signal to West:
"This is an attempt to ensure Russian views on the future of Syria and the fight against (IS) cannot be dismissed," he said.
This Is The Satellite Image That Supposedly Proves The Presence Of Russian "Troops And Aircraft" In Syria:
In a day of diplomatic snafus by the Pentagon, which first admitted it had spec ops forces in Syria (remember when it was just "advisors" and the Obama administration was blaming Russia for escalating the conflict by daring to join the fight against ISIS and sending its own troops in Damascus) then promptly retracted
Russia denies reports of proposal for Assad ouster;
The statement came in response to an interview published on the website of the British daily The Guardian on Tuesday in which former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari revealed the details of a private meeting in 2012 where Russia's Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin had allegedly urged "an elegant way for Assad to step aside."
Australian jets complete first attack against Islamic State in Syria:
Australian fighter jets have destroyed an armored personnel carrier belonging to Islamic State (IS), the first operation by Australian forces in Syria, Defense Minister Kevin Andrews said on Wednesday.
Kerry says Russia proposes military talks on Syria:
The Obama administration said Wednesday is was considering how to respond to a Russian proposal for military talks over Syria,. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said he was talking to the White House and Pentagon about the Kremlin proposal, which was made during phone calls with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in recent days.
Int'l anti-ISIS coalition flawed, you can't fight evil with illegal methods - Lavrov:
"Unfortunately, we consider the [international] coalition to be built on a flawed basis. We of course share the principles of combatting terrorism, but you cannot fight evil with illicit wars," Lavrov said.
Engineering consent for increased military budget -
Russia's Assertive Moves Weigh on Pentagon Plans for 2017 Budget:
Russia's increasing assertiveness in Europe and the Middle East is reshaping the U.S. defense budget for the coming fiscal year, according to Pentagon Comptroller Michael McCord.
This new map captures the gigantic size of American military spending:
The chart illustrates how America's military budget surpasses our next 15 closest rivals-combined. with only 5% of Earth's population, the US military budget makes up nearly half of the planet's "defense" spending.
Iraq: Baghdad market bombings kill at least 23:
The attacks targeted police checkpoints in the Wathba and Haraj markets during morning rush-hour, police said.
9 killed in Saudi-led strikes on Yemen: medics:
At least nine Yemeni civilians were killed in airstrikes by Saudi-led warplanes that targeted the home of a leader in the dominant Houthi movement in the capital Sanaa, medical sources said on Thursday.
The UN Says: US Has Killed More Civilians in Yemen Than al Qaeda:
The data on drone strikes came from the latest report on Yemen issued by the UN's Office of the High Commissioner For Human Rights (OHCHR), which compiled accounts of human rights violations from July 1, 2014 to June 30 of this year.
Yemen: Exiled PM Khaled Bahah back to form government:
Soon after pro-government forces drove Houthi rebels from the strategically important port city of Aden, exiled Yemeni Prime Minister Khaled Bahah has returned to the war-torn country along with numerous members of the defunct cabinet to form the government.
Netanyahu to tell Putin that Russian weapons transfers to Syria threatening Israel:
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will travel to Moscow next week to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and discuss Russia's recent (alleged) troop deployments in Syria, the Prime Minister's Office announced Wednesday.
Israel calls Iceland capital's boycott 'pure hatred':
Israel has lashed out at a boycott of its products by the Icelandic capital's city council over the occupation of Palestinian territory, describing it as a "volcano of hatred"
Saudi to crucify man arrested when he was 17:
Saudi Arabia has dismissed the final appeal of a juvenile prisoner set to be crucified. Ali Mohammed Al-Nimr was arrested aged 17 after participating in anti-government protests in 2012. He was accused of protesting illegally and being in possession of firearms.
At least 100 killed in South Sudan oil tanker blast:
At least 100 people were killed in South Sudan when a crowd tried to gather fuel from an oil tanker that had veered off the road on its way to a region west of the capital Juba, the presidential spokesman said Thursday.
4 soldiers killed, 10 wounded in Somalia: military:
At least 4 Somali soldiers killed, 10 others wounded in southern Somalia, military officials said on Thursday.
IS claims killing of Egypt police general:
Assailants in a car gunned down General Khaled Kamal Osman during an inspection of a police unit in the North Sinai provincial capital El-Arish late on Wednesday, the interior ministry said.
Elite troops declare Burkina Faso coup, 'dissolves' political institutions:
Burkina Faso's presidential guard declared a coup Thursday a day after seizing the interim president and senior government members, as the country geared up for its first elections since the overthrow of longtime leader Blaise Compaore.
5 Afghans killed, 41 injured in Taliban plotted car bomb:
A total of five people including the bomber were confirmed dead and 41 others injured as a car bomb rocked Paghman district, 20 km west of Afghan capital Kabul city on Wednesday, police said.
2 Taliban militants killed in northern Afghanistan clash:
Two Taliban militants were killed and three others injured in a clash erupted outside Jauzjan's provincial capital Shiberghan on Wednesday, police said.
Japanese parliament descends into violence over bill to allow troops to fight abroad:
The bill in question proposes that the military, or self-defence forces as they are known in the country, have the option to fight abroad to defend the interests of its allies even if there is no direct threat to Japan.
Hungary Tear Gases Refugees, UN Chief 'Shocked':
Hungary's crackdown on refugees and migrants has sparked outrage from it's neighbor Serbia, and U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
Migrants break through Croatia police lines at Tovarnik:
People waiting for hours in blazing heat at Tovarnik grew frustrated, though the situation is quieter now.
Croatia to block refugees from entering Slovenia:
Interior minister says refugees will have to seek asylum in Croatia as thousands stream in from Serbia.
Turkey threatens to oust refugees camped near Greek border:
Authorities warn hundreds of people trying to reach Europe by land they will be forcibly removed in three days if they refuse to leave
Climate Change Will Cause the World's Next Migration Crisis:
According to this new study, the percentage of land affected by serious drought has doubled from the 1970s to the early 2000s. One third of the world appears vulnerable to further land degradation. About half of our planet's agricultural land is moderately or severely degraded.
Global warming's one-two punch: extreme heat and drought:
These extremes present financial and social costs that will increase as we continue to warm the planet.
AVG can sell your browsing and search history to advertisers:
AVG's potential ability to collect and sell browser and search history data placed the company "squarely into the category of spyware", according to Alexander Hanff security expert and chief executive of Think Privacy.
Prisoners' Struggle Ends Indefinite Solitary Confinement:
Confirming Frederick Douglass's adage, "Power concedes nothing without a demand," prisoners held in solitary confinement for many years in California have won an unprecedented victory.
Watch: It takes 9 cops to detain US teen for jaywalking (VIDEO) :
The footage begins with the cop restraining the young man and then starting to beat the teenager with a baton.
7 Kids Not Named Mohamed Who Brought Homemade Clocks to School And Didn't Get Arrested:
Below are seven students, not named Mohamed, who got off scot-free for the heinous crime of DIY timekeeping, plus a bonus kid who brought an actual inert bomb to school and wasn't suspended.
