Syria

Secretary of State John Kerry signaled on Friday that the U.S. hopes to enlist moderate Syrian opposition fighters that the Obama administration has reluctantly decided to arm and train in the battle against militant extremists in neighboring Iraq.

A Texas man pleaded guilty on Friday of attempting to provide support and resources to a Middle Eastern foreign terrorist organization as part of a federal undercover operation, U.S. prosecutors said.

The West’s Syria policy could be best summarized in Sarah Palin’s words: “Let God sort it out.” That the U.S. forwarded the issue to God has not only helped Bashar al-Assad, but also the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) to enhance their sphere of influence.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry has said it is not fully satisfied with the process of elimination of the Syrian chemical weapons arsenal in a written statement, claiming the Syrian government has yet to destroy all of its facilities.

Turkey will continue to follow the developments with regard to the elimination of chemical weapons in Syria, the ministry said on June 27.  

The families of 163 Turkish citizens have recently applied to the security forces, reporting that their relatives have joined the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) to fight in Syria.

Tens of thousands of Syrian refugees fleeing the chaos in their homeland have arrived in Istanbul during the last year looking for abandoned areas in the city to settle in.

Scenes of women and children asking for alms in the center of Istanbul have become a familiar site for millions of the city’s residents.

Syria's opposition government sacked the military command of the rebel Free Syrian Army late Thursday over corruption allegations, as the White House asked lawmakers for $500 million for moderate insurgents.
      

"Emergence of terrorist state real danger"

NEW YORK -- Vitaly Churkin has warned that there is "a real danger of the emergence of a terrorist state in the area from ​​Syria's Aleppo to Baghdad in Iraq."

The Syrian air force carried out air strikes targeting militants on the Syrian side of the Iraq-Syria border this week, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki told the BBC on Thursday.
      

The Syrian air force carried out air strikes targeting militants along the Iraq-Syria border this week, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki told the BBC on June 26.

Maliki told the British broadcaster he "welcomed" any such strike against militants led by the jihadist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, but noted Baghdad did not request the aerial raids which took place on June 24.