Syria President Bashar-al-assad

There is an "urgent need" for the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to stop violating the ceasefire in Syria, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday, and called on Russia to help, the State Department said.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad made his first public appearance in months on Sunday, calling for a "full national mobilisation" to fight against rebels he described as Al Qaeda terrorists.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will deliver a rare speech on Sunday about the uprising against his rule, which has killed 60,000 people and brought civil war to the edge of his capital.

UN monitors arriving in Syria are starting a perilous mission as there is no formal ceasefire between President Bashar al-Assad and opposition forces, diplomats said.

Syrians are to vote on Sunday on a new constitution that could end five decades of single-party rule, although the opposition has called a boycott amid a bloody crackdown on dissent.

Western and Arab powers are to push Syria to allow in desperately needed humanitarian aid at an International conference on Friday aimed at boosting pressure on President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

Syrian security forces opened fire on Saturday on a huge crowd gathered for the funerals of demonstrators killed in rare protests in the capital, an activist spokesman in Damascus province told AFP.

There is an "urgent need" for the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to stop violating the ceasefire in Syria, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday, and called on Russia to help, the State Department said.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad made his first public appearance in months on Sunday, calling for a "full national mobilisation" to fight against rebels he described as Al Qaeda terrorists.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will deliver a rare speech on Sunday about the uprising against his rule, which has killed 60,000 people and brought civil war to the edge of his capital.

UN monitors arriving in Syria are starting a perilous mission as there is no formal ceasefire between President Bashar al-Assad and opposition forces, diplomats said.

Syrians are to vote on Sunday on a new constitution that could end five decades of single-party rule, although the opposition has called a boycott amid a bloody crackdown on dissent.

Western and Arab powers are to push Syria to allow in desperately needed humanitarian aid at an International conference on Friday aimed at boosting pressure on President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

Syrian security forces opened fire on Saturday on a huge crowd gathered for the funerals of demonstrators killed in rare protests in the capital, an activist spokesman in Damascus province told AFP.