There was mounting concern Sunday about Syria’s Christian minority after Islamic rebels captured the capital, Damascus, forcing longtime autocratic President Bashar al-Assad to flee the nation.
Israel struck a chemical weapons factory belonging to the former regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to prevent it from falling into rebel hands. The attack occurred just days after the United Nations Security Council was warned about potentially large quantities of unaccounted-for chemical warfare agents in Syria.
U.S. President-elect Donald J. Trump proclaimed Saturday on his Truth Social media platform the end of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s rule and suggested it was a moment of profound geopolitical change.
Syria’s 50-year Assad dynasty abruptly ended this weekend when a lightning 10-day rebel offensive overran government-held territory and seized Damascus with little resistance. Bashar al-Assad, who ruled for nearly 25 years, fled by plane to an unknown destination as rebels took the capital.
Canada’s Liberal government has pledged to donate banned firearms to Ukraine, which is facing a blood-stained Christmas with Russian troops backed by North Korean forces capturing more territories.
At least five people died, and four others were injured in explosions rocking a block of flats in the Dutch city of The Hague, and local authorities did not rule out a deliberate attack.
Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis says he won’t resign on December 21 as planned but will leave after a new head of state is elected.
Israel rushed to send reinforcements to the Golan Heights as they border Syria, where Islamic rebels rapidly gain territory, threatening long-time Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad’s grip on power.
Israel’s military said Friday it had “eliminated” a mastermind of aerial attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023, when 1,200 people were killed by Hamas and other air strikes targeting Israeli forces.
The European Union has ordered social media firm TikTok to freeze data linked to Romania’s elections after the meteoric rise in popularity of a pro-Russia presidential hopeful who says the moon landings “were staged,” soft drinks “include microchips” and disputes the chemical formula for water.