Bashar Assad

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This image made from video made available on Saturday, Dec. 26, 2015, by Al-Mayadeen, government-controlled Syrian Television, which has been verified and is consistent with other AP reporting shows, drone footage allegedly showing Syrian army airstrikes targeting Zahran Alloush, the head of the Army of Islam group near Damascus, Syria. (Al-Mayadeen via AP video)

Zahran Alloush assassinated; top rebel’s death in Syria reshuffles deck ahead of talks

By Zeina Karam - Associated Press

Behind the scenes, the White House is embracing a strategy that would leave the Syria President Bashar Assad in place as the world unites against a greater immediate threat from Islamic State terrorists. (Associated Press)

Obama yields to Russia and Iran, puts Bashar Assad ouster on back burner

By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times

In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks during an interview with the Spanish news agency EFE, in Damascus, Syria, Friday, Dec. 11, 2015. Assad said in the interview that Saudi Arabia, the United States and some Western countries want "terrorist groups" to join peace negotiations to try end Syria's civil war. The Syrian government refers to all insurgent groups as terrorists. (SANA via AP) ** FILE **

Bashar Assad not likely to face war crimes charges as world leaders broker Syria peace deal

By Kellan Howell - The Washington Times

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Turkey acted contrary to its own interests by downing a Russian warplane. (Associated Press/File)

Russia calling the shots as nations lock down Syria plan

By Bradley Klapper - Associated Press

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, speaks with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry during their meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2015. (Sergei Karpukhin/Pool Photo via AP) ** FILE **

Obama pushes Syria peace talks as divisions persist over Bashar Assad’s fate

By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times

US Secretary of State, John Kerry, speaks at a joint press conference with Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, at the Kremlin, Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2015 in Moscow. Earlier, in talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Kerry said the world benefits when great powers agree in their approaches to major crises. (Mandel Ngan/Pool Photo via AP)

John Kerry changes stance on Syria: ‘U.S. not seeking regime change’

By Kellan Howell - The Washington Times

US Secretary of State John Kerry, right, walks with White House senior advisor Brian Deese, left, and US Special Envoy for Climate Change Todd Stern, centre, to attend a meeting with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius during the COP 21 United Nations conference on climate change at Le Bourget, on the outskirts of Paris, on Thursday Dec. 10, 2015. (Mandel Ngan Pool via AP)

Kerry praises Syrian opposition gathering but divisions remain

By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times

Illustration on Russia in the Middle East by M. Ryder/Tribune Content Agency

HERBERT LONDON: Russian aims in the Middle East

By Herbert London

President Obama has been working hard in the wake of Turkey shooting down a Russian plane to get the two countries to find common ground in the fight against the Islamic State, however, frosty relations remain between the two powers. (Associated Press)

Obama urges Turkey and Russia to see Islamic State as common foe

By Dave Boyer - The Washington Times

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the deployment of S-400 missiles in Syria as he and other officials in Moscow escalated a war of words with Ankara after Tuesday's shootdown, which Turkey claims was justified on grounds that two Russian fighters ignored repeated warnings to change direction after entering Turkish airspace. (Associated Press)

Vladimir Putin orders S-400 missiles to Syria after Turkey downs Russian jet

By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times

President Obama struck back at critics who claim he is too soft on terrorism and is too easily appeasing countries in Southeast Asia where human rights are less a priority. However, Mr. Obama said he remains committed to defeating the Islamic State, and said he will meet with French leaders to come up with a plan. (Associated Press)

Obama vows to continue Islamic State fight, partner with France

By Dave Boyer - The Washington Times

This photo made from footage taken from Russian Defense Ministry official website Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015, shows a Russian Su-24M during a Russian air raid in Syria. Islamic State militants are barricading down for a possible assault on their de facto capital Raqqa, hiding among civilian homes and preventing anyone from fleeing, as international airstrikes intensify on the Syrian city in the wake of the Paris attacks. For many, the threat of missiles and bombs from the enemies of Islamic State is more of an immediate threat than the vicious oppression of the jihadis&#8217; themselves. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

Assad: Syrian troops advancing thanks to Russian airstrikes

By ALBERT AJI and BASSEM MROUE - Associated Press

President Obama speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin before a bilateral meeting at United Nations headquarters in New York, Monday, Sept. 28, 2015. (Associated Press)

Vladimir Putin’s help in Islamic State fight seen likely to come with strings attached

By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times

In this file photo taken on Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin, center, shakes hand with Syrian President Bashar Assad as Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, right, looks on in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia. (Alexei Druzhinin, RIA-Novosti, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

Bashar Assad: Vladimir Putin the ‘only defender of Christian civilization’

By Kellan Howell - The Washington Times

In this photo provided by the Syrian anti-government activist group Douma Revolution, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, people gather near damaged buildings, in the aftermath of an airstrike that activists said was carried out by Russia, in Douma, Syria, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2015. (Douma Revolution via AP)

U.S. says 90 percent of Russian strikes hitting Syria’s moderate opposition

By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times

Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks during an interview with the Iran's Khabar TV, in Damascus, Syria., in this Oct. 4, 2015, file photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA. (SANA via AP, File)

U.S. pledges nearly $100 million to support Syrian opposition

By Adam Schreck - Associated Press

U.S. Navy SEALs in action. (U.S. Navy photo)

American special forces to deploy to Syria; U.S., Russia and Iran ‘agree to disagree’ on Assad

By Dave Boyer - The Washington Times

Secretary of State John Kerry walks to the Hotel Bristol in Vienna, Austria, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2015, for a meeting with the Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif. Kerry and other leaders are in Vienna to discuss solutions to the conflict in Syria. (Brendan Smialowski/Pool via AP)

Attack kills dozens in Syria as talks begin in Vienna

By Zeina Karam - Associated Press

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, left, and Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry share a word prior to talks on Syria at a hotel in Vienna, Austria, Friday, Oct. 30, 2015. (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)

Nations weigh cease-fire, transition plan in Syria, officials say

By George Jahn and Bradley Klapper - Associated Press

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry takes his seat for a meeting in Vienna, Friday, Oct. 23, 2015. Kerry and his Russian, Saudi and Turkish counterparts met in Vienna on Friday, seeking to revive a moribund effort to end Syria's civil war. (Carlo Allegri/Pool Photo via AP) ** FILE **

Iran to attend Syria talks in Vienna

By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times