Syria

Foreign minister says Islamic Republic willing to join peace talks in January.

FSA leader says forces will not halt battle to wrest power from Assad while Geneva talks go on.

Saudis, Jordanians and Egyptians hunt for virgins in Syrian refugee camps.

Pontiff worried by sectarian violence in Syria, Iraq and Egypt urges authorities to protect the faithful.

David Meseguer and Oriol Gracia's documentary shows Kurds' quiet resistance to Assad and al-Qaida.

Syria and North Korea might be out in the cold, but maintain good relations through their rulers.

Tehran's cultural attaché to Lebanon, Sheikh Ibrahim Ansari, among 23 killed by twin blast in Hezbollah stronghold

Former German national under-17 team player dead in bombing after quitting football for radical Islam.

The Syrian Electronic Army has hacked the Anti-Shabiha website for allegedly publishing the details of innocent Syrians

Minister calls for action to stop persecution of Christians in Iraq and Syria.

Sunni Islamist fighter Mohammed Fares decapitated by Islamic State of Syria and Levante in Aleppo.

Medics at three hospitals in northern Israel patching up Syrians hurt in fighting.

World's second largest refugee camp will be transformed into a city with councils and paved streets

Syria has handed over plans on how it will destroy all its chemical weapons and production equipment by 2014.

Battling both Assad and al-Qaida, Syrian Kurds may prove to be precious allies for the West, writes Emanuela Pergolizzi

Saudi spy chief warns of 'major shift' in Riyadh-Washington ties.

London 11 meeting told of opposition Syrian National Coalition conditions and Saudi Arabia ends cooperation.

Two Turkish pilots and nine Lebanese Shiite pilgrims reach home as authorities strike deal over release.

Doctor claims snipers in Syria bet cash and cigarettes on shooting unborn babies.

Nine Lebanese Shiite pilgrims held captive for one year are on their way home, having arrived in southern Turkey.

Syrian president says loss of chemical weapons is a morale blow for regime.

Gunmen have kidnapped six Red Cross workers and a local volunteer of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent in northwest Syria.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says anti-Assad groups being trained by foreigners.

Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons receives Nobel Peace Prize for long-standing work.

Prime minister also criticises John Kerry for praising Assad on chemical weapons elimination.

Occupation of ferry footbridge in Calais gets dramatic after two Syrians threaten suicide

Syria's foreign minister tells UN General Assembly anti-Assad rebels eat human hearts and sever limbs while victims are alive.

Apart from giving free access to chemical weapons experts, resolution okays Syria transition government plan.

US and Russia agree on draft resolution on Syria's chemical weapons, ending weeks of diplomatic deadlock.

Russia to 'safeguard' mustard gas, VX and sarin, says Iran parliament speaker.