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Robert Fisk: The West is horrified by children's slaughter now. Soon we'll forget

Mon, 28 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Bashar al-Assad will get away with it. He got away with Deraa. He got away with Homs. And he'll get away with Houla. So will the armed opposition to the regime, along with al-Qa'ida and any other outfits joining in Syria's tragedy. Yes, this may be the critical moment, the "tipping point" of horror, when Baathist collapse becomes inevitable rather than probable. And dear Mr Hague may be "absolutely" appalled. The UN, too. We all are.

Middle East under attack in cyber war discovery

Mon, 28 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

A massive cyber attack against Middle Eastern nations capable of sweeping up huge amounts of sensitive data has been discovered by security researchers who said it was most likely a state-sponsored spying attempt.

Bahrain GP hunger striker ends his protest

Mon, 28 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

The jailed Bahraini hunger striker Abdulhadi al-Khawaja – who emerged as the face of the protests against the Grand Prix in the Gulf nation earlier this year – was set to end his strike last night, 110 days after he began refusing food.

Fire at one of world's most luxurious malls leaves 13 children dead

Mon, 28 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Nineteen people were killed by a fire that destroyed an upmarket shopping centre in the Qatari capital, Doha, yesterday, with 13 children among the dead.

Hague sent packing by Russia as Annan peace plan crumbles

Mon, 28 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Kofi Annan arrived in Damascus yesterday in a desperate bid to rescue his peace plan and prevent Syria from sinking deeper into civil war, but hopes of a united international front were dashed when Russia refused to unequivocally condemn Bashar al-Assad's regime for the Houla massacre.

UN condemns Syria after massacre of civilians

Sun, 27 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

The United Nations Security Council last night condemned the Syrian government "in the strongest possible terms" for heavy-weapon attacks on the town of Houla, where 108 people, and up to 34 children, were killed on Friday.

Assad regime blames murderous onslaught on Houla's rebel army for slaughter of children of Houla

Sun, 27 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Syria yesterday denied that its forces had carried out a massacre of at least 116 people including dozens of children in the central Syrian town of Houla, claiming that the slaughter was the work of rebels.

UN stages emergency summit over Syria atrocity

Sun, 27 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

An emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council was to convene last night to co-ordinate a response to the escalating bloodshed in Syria, amid widespread condemnation of the massacre at Houla, in which more than 116 people, including at least 34 children, were killed.

President's family 'directing crimes against humanity'

Sun, 27 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

The "crimes against humanity" being perpetrated in Syria are being co-ordinated directly by President Bashar al-Assad and his inner circle, according to defectors from the country's security and intelligence services.

British resident sentenced in absentia by Bahrain court for 'trying to overthrow government'

Sun, 27 May 2012 16:03:38 GMT

A British resident has been sentenced in absentia by a court in Bahrain for allegedly trying to overthrow the government.

Hague increases pressure on Syria over Houla massacre

Sun, 27 May 2012 12:07:50 GMT

The Foreign Secretary William Hague will summon the Syrian charge d'affairs to the Foreign Office tomorrow in order to express Britain's condemnation of the massacre in Houla.

Exclusive dispatch: Assad blamed for massacre of the innocents

Sun, 27 May 2012 10:27:01 GMT

In a massacre of unprecedented savagery that brings Syria close to civil war, some 32 children and 60 adults have been slaughtered in villages in the Houla area of central Syria. Anti-government militants blame pro-regime gunmen for carrying out the butchery in which children and their parents were hacked and shot to death.

Assad's troops 'kill at least 90 people' in Homs

Sat, 26 May 2012 07:09:05 GMT

President Bashar Assad's forces killed at least 90 civilians, including 13 children, in central Syria, activists said.

Assad's troops 'kill 50 people' in Homs

Sat, 26 May 2012 07:09:05 GMT

President Bashar Assad's forces killed at least 50 civilians, including 13 children, in central Syria, activists said.

Israel faces criticism from US over attitudes to African migrants

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Israel is facing rare criticism from the US State Department and some American Jewish organisations over the backlash against African asylum-seekers which peaked when a demonstration by residents in Tel Aviv turned violent this week.

Syrians on edge as UN teams bring precarious peace – until night falls

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Soldiers guard earth barricades surrounding Douma on the outskirts of Damascus, while tough-looking militants control the streets. It is a stalemate which neither side, for the moment, is willing to break.

Suicide bomber kills 12 at school in northern Yemen

Fri, 25 May 2012 15:09:27 GMT

A suicide bomber drove into a school in northern Yemen's al-Jawf province where members of a Shi'ite Muslim rebel group had gathered for Friday prayers and killed 12 people, the defence ministry said.

UN nuclear agency probes Iran uranium find

Fri, 25 May 2012 11:52:18 GMT

The UN nuclear agency has found traces of uranium at Iran's underground atomic site enriched to higher than previous levels and closer to what is needed for nuclear weapons, diplomats say.

Families of Syrian rebels killed in their homes, says UN

Thu, 24 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Government forces executed entire families in their homes as part of the crackdown on the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, UN investigators have found.

Sanctions stalemate as world powers reject Iran's nuclear plan

Thu, 24 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Iran yesterday rejected internationally backed incentives for Tehran to curb its nuclear programme in a development which stopped well short of a breakdown but suggested that negotiations which lie ahead could be protracted and tortuous.

Troops 'kill 35 al-Qa'ida militants' in Yemen

Thu, 24 May 2012 16:50:09 GMT

Yemen says its troops have killed 35 al-Qa'ida militants in an attack on a hideout in the country's south, part of a wider offensive.

US cargo ship saved from pirates by Iranian navy

Thu, 24 May 2012 15:41:06 GMT

Iran and an American-led naval coalition each said today that they responded to a distress call by a US-flagged cargo ship that came under fire from gunmen in the Gulf of Oman a day earlier.

Iran nuclear talks resume for second day

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:42:45 GMT

Envoys from Iran and six world powers have resumed talks over Tehran's nuclear programme after issuing rival proposals during the opening day of negotiations in Baghdad.

Iran talks resume for second day

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:42:45 GMT

Envoys from Iran and six world powers have resumed talks over Tehran's nuclear programme after issuing rival proposals during the opening day of negotiations in Baghdad.

Bullish allies resist Iran's call for end to nuclear sanctions

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

World powers meeting in Baghdad yesterday produced new proposals aimed at limiting the levels of uranium enrichment in Iran's nuclear programme and edging towards a deal they hope could lift the threat of a Middle East war.