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Fabius: Assad Doesn't Deserve to be on This Earth

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius called Friday for Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime to be "smashed fast" as he visited Turkey's largest refugee camp near the border.

"The Syrian regime should be smashed fast," Fabius told reporters. "After hearing the refugees and their account of the massacres of the regime, Mr. Bashar al-Assad doesn't deserve to be on this earth."

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U.N. Food Agency 'to Help 1 Million people' in Syria

The U.N.'s World Food Program said Friday it plans to feed one million people in Syria affected by the ongoing fighting, up from its initial target of 850,000.

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Over 2,000 Syrians Including One General Flee to Turkey

Over 2,000 Syrians, including one defecting general, fled to Turkey on Thursday after a Syrian air strike on the northern rebel bastion of Aazaz in northern Syria, a Turkish diplomat said Friday.

The latest group of 2,204 people brought the number of Syrian refugees in Turkey to more than 62,000, the diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity.

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Geagea: Recent Events Result of Syrian Regime Disappointment with Suleiman, Miqati over Samaha Arrest

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea accused on Friday the Syrian regime of being behind the recent instability in Lebanon, saying that it is “upset with the Lebanese government for its failure to properly support it during its crisis.”

He added during a press conference: “The Syrian regime is disappointed with President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister Najib Miqati over the arrest of former minister and MP Michel Samaha.”

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Syria Economy Chief Flying to Moscow Saturday

Syria's chief economic negotiator this weekend will pay his second visit to Moscow in two weeks for talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the country's ambassador said on Friday.

Deputy Prime Minister Qadri Jamil will probably arrive in Moscow on Saturday and meet Lavrov either on Monday or Tuesday, Syrian Ambassador Riyad Haddad was quoted as saying by Interfax.

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Fabius Says Latest Incidents in Lebanon Facilitate Spill over of Syrian Crisis

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said Friday that the latest security incidents and kidnappings in Lebanon facilitate the spill over of the Syrian crisis to the country.

“The latest incidents in Lebanon facilitate the spill over of the Syrian crisis but we hope to find a solution to this situation,” Fabius said at Rafik Hariri International Airport following a two-day visit to Beirut.

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72 Dead as Syrian Army Battles Rebels around Capital, Pounds Aleppo Rebel Hubs

Syrian forces pounded rebel hubs in the northern city of Aleppo and battled opposition fighters around Damascus on Friday, activists said, as the U.N. reported a surge in the number of people fleeing.

And despite the imminent departure of the observers, the United Nations announced that veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi will take over as international envoy from Kofi Annan, who quit earlier this month.

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Hijab in Qatar on Three-Day Visit

Syria's former Prime Minister Riad Hijab, who fled to Jordan after defecting almost two weeks ago, is now in Qatar, his spokesman said on Friday.

"Mr. Hijab went to Qatar on Thursday for a three-day visit during which he will address the media to spell out his plans and his program," spokesman Mohammed Otri told Agence France Presse.

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Another Turkish Citizen Kidnapped in Lebanon

A Turkish man became the second foreigner to be kidnapped in Lebanon since al-Meqdad clan and another obscure group went on an abduction spree of Syrians and Turkish nationals on Wednesday to pressure the Free Syrian Army in releasing a member of the clan.

The National News Agency said Friday that Abd Basset Orssolane was abducted in the area of Choueifat near the Coca Cola factory.

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Charbel Says Government Didn’t Fail in Attempts to Resolve Abduction Cases

Interior Minister Marwan Charbel shrugged off criticism on Friday that the Lebanese government failed in dealing with the cases of the kidnapped Lebanese in Syria.

“It sought to resolve the matter calmly and requested help from everyone to resolve the case,” Charbel told al-Liwaa newspaper.

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