Deborah Amos

U.S. War Planes Participate In Exercise In Jordan

Deborah Amos — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 10:03:00 +0000

Jordan is hosting major military exercises known as Eager Lion 2013. More than 15,000 soldiers from 18 countries, including the U.S., will be participating. The war games kicked off as Syria's civil war rages next door.

Is Syria's Bashar Assad Getting The Upper Hand?

Deborah Amos — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 13:51:00 +0000

After more than a year of military stalemate in Syria between the rebels and the government, President Bashar Assad appears to be making political and military gains and is not likely to be pushed aside anytime soon, according to many analysts.

Assad reasserted his plans to stay in power during a recent interview on Al Manar TV, a channel owned by Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite militant group, which has openly joined the Syria war on Assad's side.

The symbolism was clear.

Teaching The Rules Of War In Syria's Vicious Conflict

Deborah Amos — Wed, 15 May 2013 17:36:00 +0000

A new video from Syria is shocking even by the standards of a war that keeps setting new standards for brutality.

In the video, a rebel fighter identified as Khalid al-Hamad is shown cutting out and eating the organs of a dead government soldier.

This appeared shortly after a pro-regime militia filmed the aftermath of a massacre of Sunni villagers in the coastal town of Banias, in which at least 62 people, including babies, were stabbed or sh

Top U.S. Official Meets With Rebels Inside Syria

Deborah Amos — Thu, 09 May 2013 21:34:00 +0000

Ambassador Robert Ford, the State Department's point man on Syrian policy, crossed into northern Syria on Wednesday. The secret visit was confirmed by Syrian activists at the media office at the Bab al-Salama crossing on the Turkish frontier.

Ford met with the head of the Aleppo military council, Abdul Jabbar Okaidi, who thanked him for the shipment of nonlethal aid. Seven trucks transported some 65,000 MREs, or meals ready to eat, the U.S. military's battlefield rations.

Syrians Bused To Jordanian Refugee Camps

Deborah Amos — Mon, 06 May 2013 09:25:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Good morning. I'm David Greene.

Syria has accused Israel of flagrantly violating international law after a series of airstrikes on targets near the Syrian capital over the weekend. Now, Israel has not officially accepted responsibility, but Israeli sources say the targets included Iranian-made missiles bound for Hezbollah fighters in neighboring Lebanon.

As the civil war rages on inside Syria, the rebels trying to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad have made significant gains in the southern part of the country.