Dec 26 Visiting troops in Iraq, Trump defends Syria withdrawal By Darlene Superville, Associated Press The U.S. presence in Syria was not meant to be "open-ended," the president said, adding that other wealthy nations should pay for rebuilding the country. Continue reading
Dec 25 Syrian state media reports a missile attack near Damascus By Bassem Mroue, Associated Press Warplanes flying over Lebanon fired missiles toward areas near the Syrian capital of Damascus late Tuesday and some of the missiles were shot down by air defense units, Syrian state TV said. Continue reading
Dec 25 Pope Francis calls for ‘fraternity’ in Christmas message Addressing tens of thousands of tourists, pilgrims and Romans in St. Peter's Square, Pope Francis says Tuesday that the universal message of Christmas is that "God is a good Father and we are all brothers and sisters."… Continue reading
Dec 25 AP fact check: Trump revisits old fictions about Iran money By Calvin Woodward, Associated Press President Donald Trump is recycling familiar fictions concerning the Iran nuclear deal as he lashes out at a Republican senator who criticized him and a U.S. official who resigned in protest against Trump's plan to pull troops from Syria. Here's… Continue reading
Dec 24 Watch 8:38 Troop drawdowns and Defense Dept. turnover leave U.S. foreign policy in flux Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has signed the order withdrawing U.S. troops from Syria. Meanwhile, President Trump wants to reduce the number of American troops in Afghanistan by half. But what will the decreased U.S. military presence in these countries mean… Continue watching
Dec 23 Watch 25:00 December 23, 2018 – PBS NewsHour Weekend full episode By PBS News Hour On this edition for Sunday, Dec. 23, it's day two of the partial government shutdown, President Trump accelerates the departure of Defense Secretary James Mattis and the U.S. envoy leading the fight against ISIS steps down. And later, part two… Continue watching
Dec 23 Watch 4:31 Mattis, McGurk shakeup leaves Syria in ‘state of uncertainty’ By PBS News Hour Following a decision to pull 2,000 U.S. forces from Syria in the coming weeks, President Trump also expedited Defense Secretary Jim Mattis’ resignation Sunday, and Brett McGurk, the U.S. envoy to the global coalition fighting the Islamic State group, resigned. Continue watching
Dec 23 Trump loses U.S. envoy to anti-IS coalition over Syria plan By Susannah George, Matthew Lee, Associated Press Brett McGurk, the U.S. envoy to the global coalition fighting the Islamic State group, has resigned in protest over President Donald Trump’s abrupt decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria. Continue reading
Dec 22 Syria sends reinforcements east after Trump’s pullout plan By Associated Press The reinforcements arrived after U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced he was pulling all 2,000 U.S. troops out of Syria. Continue reading
Dec 21 Mattis is leaving. What does that mean for Trump? By Joshua Barajas, Daniel Bush Here’s why Mattis’ resignation has worried lawmakers and what it means for U.S. foreign policy going forward. Continue reading