After a lull, heavy fighting broke out in Damascus. Rebels said they had gone on the offensive against strategic targets in the city’s southern neighborhood of Jabar. Two suicide bombings, targeting a military compound in the central city of Palmyra, killed 19 government soldiers.
Abd el Kader Mahmoud Mohamed el Sayed was a close advisor to al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri and served as a military commander in Afghanistan before he was killed. El Sayed was involved in the Luxor massacre and, while living in Milan, was recorded by Italian intelligence discussing terror plots against the West.
Why Argentina is reaching out to Iran
Post-Assad Syria poses new, unknown dangers for Israel
US officials increasingly believe that Israel’s primary target in last week’s raid was a convoy of antiaircraft weapons and not the SSRC facility in Jamraya.
Two Russians and an Italian were released in a prisoner exchange with rebels. The leader of the rebel Syrian National Coalition called on President Assad to respond to his offer for a dialogue. Nearly 5,000 Syrians were killed in January.
Israeli Strike Into Syria Said to Damage Research Site
Syrian rebel fighters armed with cash storm Turkish military supply shops
Western intelligence officials say additional targets were struck in Syria by the Israeli Air Force earlier this week. On Feb. 2, Syrian state television aired footage that purported to show the damage caused by Israel’s airstrikes.
Syria strikes back? Hackers break into Haaretz emails, threaten more attacks
Panetta: Iranian threat spreads
After days of heavy fighting, rebels captured a strategic road linking Aleppo with its main airport. The head of the rebel National Coalition alliance held the first direct talks with senior Russian officials. He also planned talks with Iran. The Assad regime considered talks with the rebels.
US Secretary of State Clinton said Iran has stepped up its military and financial support to the Syrian government. There were also indications that Russia has continued to supply Syria with money and equipment.
Iran increasing Syrian regime aid, Clinton warns
Iran, Israel and Their Red Lines Over Syria
What we know about the Israeli air strike in Syria
Syrian allies Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah denounced Israel’s attack on a Syrian convoy. Syria protested to the UN and threatened to retaliate. The US warned Syria against transferring weapons to Hezbollah.
The advanced Syrian weapons that have the IDF worried
Arab nations, U.S. pledge hundreds of millions for Syria crisis
Ferocious battle for strategic suburb could hold the keys to Damascus
Syria opposition chief says ready for talks with regime
Both rebels and the government accused each other of the execution-style massacre of more than 100 people in Aleppo. The head of the rebel coalition said he was willing to hold talks with representatives of the Assad regime.
‘Don’t Forget Your Photo Albums!’: The Flight of Syria’s Middle Classes
Eastern Syria has long been a haven for al Qaeda in Iraq, but now the terror group’s affiliate is openly ruling a town near the Iraqi border.
The Israeli Air Force reportedly carried out an airstrike on a Syrian weapons convoy overnight. Reports suggest that Russian-made SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles, believed to be headed for Hezbollah, were struck in Syria, not far from the Lebanese border.
Syria’s Aleppo University tries to carry on after mystery blasts
Syria gets ‘blowback’ after playing with fire in Iraq
The bodies of more than 100 men and boys, apparently executed, were pulled out of a river in Aleppo. After five days of fighting, rebels overran an intelligence complex in eastern Syria, freeing 11 from its prison facility. Syrian refugees exceed 700,000.
Inside the war for Syria’s mountains
The Al Nusrah Front has claimed credit for five of the six suicide attacks that have been reported in Syria so far this year.