Many Syrians recruited by regime following 2011 outbreak of civil war have not had their salaries paid by Damascus and as a result, are turning to the drug trade in an effort to supplement their lost income.
Regime forces blame Turkey for not abiding by its commitments under a truce deal reached last week, which called for a buffer zone in Idlib.
Multiple-car crash sets off an explosion that ignites a fire at Egypt's main cancer hospital, 30 others are injured. Egypt’s public prosecutor is investigating the cause of the incident, but there is no official statement indicating that the explosion was a terrorist attack.
Eight-year conflict and sanctions against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad have caused the currency to plummet and shortages in everything from gasoline to baby formula. Medicine is also scarce.
State news agencies report two pilots survived the crash and say that the jet went down because of a technical malfunction.
Arab media says 31 people, including Syrian soldiers and Shiite militias killed when weapons shipment stored in Shayrat Airbase explodes. The base is known as a port for weapon deliveries headed to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Damascus says explosion an "accident."
A series of royal decrees continue pushing reforms gnawing at the heavily criticized male guardianship system in the Persian Gulf kingdom. According to the new decree, women no longer need a male relative's permission to issue passports or travel outside Saudi Arabia.
Probe called after Britain, France, the United States, Germany, Belgium, Peru, Poland, Kuwait, the Dominican Republic and Indonesia deliver a formal diplomatic petition over the lack of an inquiry into attacks on some 14 locations.
"If Saudi Arabia is ready for dialogue, we are always ready for dialogue with our neighbors," Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif says a day after Iran holds maritime security talks with UAE in an apparent bid to calm tensions in the Gulf.
"You don't need to come to Iran," Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says after Pompeo offeres to hold direct talks. Rejection comes amid ongoing tension in the Gulf, with Iran increasingly violating terms of nuclear deal.
