Syrian Protests

• Syrian gunboats fire on coastal city; 19 killed

  Syrian gunboats firing heavy machine guns pounded impoverished districts of Latakia on Sunday, killing at least 19 people in a renewed assault on the Mediterranean coastal city, activists said.

• Syria's crackdown hits ally Hezbollah's image

  As Syria's crackdown on protesters gets bloodier, it is having repercussions for one of Damascus' most crucial allies, eroding the reputation of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

• Saudi Arabia condemns violence in Syria; recalls its ambassador

  King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has said in a statement carried by an Arab news channel that the kingdom is recalling for consultations its current ambassador to Syria.

• Activists say Syrian troops kill at least 52

  Syrian forces intensified their crackdown on an eastern city Sunday as they try to keep the anti-government uprising from escalating during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The assault and similar operations in at least two other towns killed at least 52 people, according to human rights groups, and the toll looked likely to rise.The worst violenc...

• Syrian troops fire on protesters, killing 10

  Security forces opened fire on protesters, killing at least 10, as tens of thousands poured into streets across Syria on Friday, chanting for the fall of President Bashar Assad and defying a fierce military siege of Hama, where tanks shelled residential districts around dawn.

• Syrian troops attack Hama for second day

  Anti-government protesters in the Syrian city of Hama set up barricades and took up sticks and stones to defend themselves on Monday after one of the bloodiest days so far in the regime's campaign to quell an uprising now in its fifth month.

• Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri praises Syrian protesters

  Al Qaeda's new leader has praised Syrian protesters seeking to topple the regime of President Bashar Assad while trying to portray the uprising as an Islamic battle against American and Israeli interests.

• Syrian security forces shoot dead 8 protesters

  Activists say Syrian security forces have shot dead eight people -- including a 16-year-old boy -- during anti-government protests.The toll was reported on Friday by the Local Coordination Committees, a group that documents the protests, and by rights activist Mustafa Osso.Three people were killed in the central city of Homs, two in the eastern tow...