For today, links to six reports: from Reuters, the Cradle, the Associated Press, and National Public Radio, and to commentary from Middle East Monitor and MintNews; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA and UKRAINE entries for this date are HERE and HERE.)
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Netanyahu says Israel will remain on Mt. Hermon ‘until another arrangement is found.’ From Reuters. JERUSALEM — Israel will remain on the strategic Mount Hermon site on the Syrian border until another arrangement is found, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. Israeli troops occupied the site following the collapse of . . . READ MORE . . .
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FROM DEC. 16 Israeli army settles in for ‘long term occupation’ of Syria’s Mt. Hermon. From the Cradle. Israel is deepening its occupation of Syrian territory, including making plans to retain control of the strategic summit of Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights, in addition to most of the water sources in Quneitra . . . READ MORE . . .
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Leader of former Syrian opposition says transitional government should not exclude any party. From Reuters. DUBAI — Hadi al-Bahra, head of the Syrian National Coalition that grouped opponents of Bashar al-Assad during the civil war, said today Syria’s transitional government should be credible and not exclude any Syrian party or be based on sectarianism. READ MORE . . .
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FROM DEC. 17 After Assad’s fall, the task of unearthing the dead from Syria’s mass graves is just beginning, by Sarah el Deeb | AP NAJHA, Syria — Bones are visible here and there among the mounds of earth in a field south of Damascus, one of the mass graves around Syria believed to hold the bodies of tens of thousands of people killed under Bashar Assad’s rule. More than 150,000 Syrians remain unaccounted for . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.
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FROM DEC. 17 A family reunites after years of separation during Assad regime in Syrians. Reported by Hadeel Al-Shalchi | NPR A Syrian mother and daughter are reunited for the first time in 6 years after the fall of the Assad regime, and freedom of movement returns to the country. Click HERE to listen and read.
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Bombing Syria is never likely to do anything except feed the chaos, by Binoy Kampmark | Middle East Monitor The justifications are always the same. We are moving into territory for security reasons. We are creating a temporary buffer zone from which tactical advantage . . . READ MORE . . .
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FROM DEC. 12 How the West rebranded al-Qaeda’s Jolani, by Alan MacLeod | MintPress News / Consortium News Corporate media is heralding the fall of Bashar al-Assad and the emergence of Abu Mohammed al-Jolani as the new leader of Syria, despite his deep ties to both Al-Qaeda and ISIS. READ MORE . . .