UN envoy Kofi Annan acknowledged that diplomatic efforts to find a solution to the violence in Syria had failed. Government artillery fired shells across the border into Lebanon; rebels had crossed the border seeking refuge. Government forces attempted to regain control of rebel-held territory in Aleppo.
In its first free elections in 60 years, Libyans voted for an assembly that would pick a cabinet and a prime minister. Armed groups in the east wanting more autonomy shut off half of Libya’s oil exports.
Details emerge on Iran’s priorities in nuclear talks
Iran accused French and German spy services of cooperating with the US and Israel in the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientists. An Iran state TV poll revealed a majority of Iranians wanted its nuclear program stopped in return for a lifting of economic sanctions.
Salafi clerics back death threat against Moroccan calling for legalizing sex outside marriage
A general in the elite Republican Guard who is a member of President Assad’s inner circle defected and fled the country. Government forces attacked the northern town of Khan Sheikhoun. The Friends of Syria group, meeting in Paris, called for more sanctions.
Journalist behind the lines in Syria sees no end to war
Opposition political groups meeting in Cairo agreed to a transition plan and to support the Free Syrian Army, but failed to form a unified representative body. The Al Nusra Front claimed responsibility for bombing a pro-government TV station. Hezbollah and Iran would fight alongside the Assad regime if it was attacked by foreign forces.
Jordan moves to court Islamists
President Assad expressed regret over shooting down a Turkish jet. Turkey scrambled fighter jets for a third day after Syrian helicopters flew near to the Turkey-Syrian border. Eighty-five Syrian soldiers defected to Turkey. A Human Rights Watch report said the Syrian intelligence agencies were running torture centers across the country.
Violence within the country continues to rise, and tensions with Turkey have escalated dramatically since Syria shot down a Turkish jet. A new UN peace plan has little chance of success.
Sanctions against Iranian oil exports took effect. Iran said it had a stockpile of money and goods to weather the sanctions. However, food prices and unemployment have risen. Iran called for an emergency OPEC meeting as oil prices fell.
At an international conference, a compromise agreement was reached for a UN-backed political transition, but no agreement was reached on the fate of President Assad. Syrian opposition groups rejected the plan, while Assad rejected any external solution. Government forces renewed their offensives around the country.
Turkey scrambled F-16 fighters jets as Syrian helicopters approached its border. The action came after Prime Minister Erdogan had warned that any Syrian military approaching the border would be treated as a threat.
Iran Braces For Full Force Of EU Oil Embargo
Helicopter gunships attacked a strategic town in northern Syria. A large tank force massed near the Turkish boarder. Government forces shelled neighborhoods in Damascus, killing 43 people. While international diplomats prepared to meet in Geneva, President Assad rejected any external solution.
Two powerful bombs exploded outside the Justice Ministry building in central Damascus. the UN’s Kofi Annan called for a national unity government. Russia said it would not support the plan.
Turkey reenforced its military forces along its border with Syria. However, Turkey said it had no intention of invading.
An Israeli military court found Hamas leader Ibrahim Hamed guilt of planning a string of suicide bomb attacks. Hamas accused Israel of assassinating one of its leaders, Kamal Husni Ghanaja.
Gunmen attacked a pro-Assad TV station near Damascus, destroying the station and killing seven employees. President Assad said the country was at war and no effort should be spared to achieve victory. The UN said violence had worsened since the attempted peace plan in April.
West worried by China-Pakistan atomic ties: sources
An Egyptian court struck down a decree giving the military authority to detain civilians. The ruling rolls back some of the powers the military had accumulated over the previous year.
Syria’s chemical weapons: How secure are they?
Fierce fighting broke out around elite Republican Guard posts in the capital of Damascus. The rebel Free Syrian Army captured a military base in the northern town of Daret Ezzah. The UN said Syria is too dangerous for peacekeeping monitors to resume their mission.
Following Syria’s shoot-down of a Turkish jet, Turkey warned Syria to stay away from its borders. Turkey’s prime minister said that his country would offer all possible support “to liberate the Syrians from dictatorship.”
Iranian Boycott Targets Rising Food Prices
Video: Syrian army is ‘destroyed physically and mentally’, says defected Syrian General
Defections, Downed Turkish Jet Worsen Syria Crisis
Thirty-three members of the Syrian military and their families defected to Turkey. The EU condemned Syria’s downing of a Turkish jet aircraft but ruled out a military response.
Mohamed Mursi, the Muslim Brotherhood candidate, was declared the winner of the presidential election. Mursi began forming a new government.