Aleppo / AFP Syrian regime forces advanced quickly in rebel-held areas of Aleppo on Monday, pressing a new offensive in defiance of international concern over the fate of the city and its residents. More than 100 civilians have been killed in the east since the regime’s latest offensive began on Tuesday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights …

  Damascus / AFP US President Barack Obama said he is “not optimistic” about Syria’s future, as the UN warned time is running out to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe in Aleppo which has been pounded by air strikes for nearly a week. Government forces launched a ferocious assault last Tuesday to recapture eastern Aleppo, killing 115 civilians so far. In …

  Sanaa / AFP A 48-hour ceasefire ended on Monday in Yemen after failing to stem violence across the country, with both sides blaming each other for deadly “violations” of the US-backed truce. The ceasefire, aimed at ending the chaos and bloodshed that has gripped Yemen since March 2015, came into effect on Saturday following the intervention of US Secretary …