Bloomberg Volkswagen AG’s namesake car brand plans a four-door fastback model more expensive than its mid-sized Passat but cheaper than the Phaeton luxury sedan that it axed last year, pushing further to revive profit and rebound from its diesel-emissions scandal. The addition to VW’s line-up will be inspired by the Sport Coupe Concept GTE unveiled at the Geneva auto …

Beirut / AFP Syrian government forces advanced against rebels inside Aleppo on Thursday, making their biggest gains in the ravaged city in years just hours after announcing they would ease their air bombardment. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said loyalist fighters now controlled around half of the Bustan al-Basha district near the centre of the divided metropolis. “It’s the …

  Beirut / AP The UN envoy for Syria has urged Al Qaida-linked fighters in the rebel-held eastern parts of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo to leave the area. Staffan de Mistura also asked Russian and Syrian forces if they would immediately stop their “aerial bombing” of Aleppo, providing militants from the Fatah Al Sham Front group — formerly …