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Syria: No Message Was Conveyed between Assad, Davutoglu

An official source at the Syrian Foreign Ministry denied on Thursday media reports that a meeting was recently held between President Bashar Assad and Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, labeling them as untrue, reported the state news agency SANA.

The source said that the last meeting between the two officials took place in August, adding “no messages were conveyed from or to anyone during the meeting.”

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12 Dead in Army, Deserters Clash in Idlib as U.N. Says More than 2,900 Killed since March

Twelve people were killed in clashes between soldiers and deserters in villages of Idlib province in northwest Syria on Thursday, a human rights group said.

"Seven soldiers and five deserters were killed in the clashes in villages west of Jabal al-Zawiya," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, adding that dozens were wounded.

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Berri Returns from Armenia: Lebanon Witnessing Monetary, Security Stability despite Tensions

Speaker Nabih Berri stressed on Wednesday that the will to hold dialogue in Lebanon will always defeat security instability.

He said: “Despite the tensions, Lebanon is witnessing a period of monetary and security stability.”

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Germany Summons Syrian Ambassador over U.N. Tirade

Germany has summoned the Syrian ambassador to Berlin over a tirade by Damascus's envoy to the United Nations, the foreign ministry said in a statement here Thursday.

"The Syrian ambassador in Germany was summoned yesterday to the foreign ministry," the statement said.

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Four Syrian Soldiers Killed, Civilians Hurt in Idlib

Four Syrian soldiers were killed and several civilians wounded on Thursday during clashes between troops and deserters in a town in northwest Syria, rights activists said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said troops and security agents had attacked villages in the region,

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Ministers Defend Silence on Incursion as March 14 Calls for Summoning Syrian Envoy

Cabinet ministers defended the March 8-led government against critics who accused it of intentionally not issuing a statement against several incursions made by the Syrian army in Lebanese towns in the North and the eastern Bekaa valley.

Information Minister Walid Daouq told Free Lebanon radio that the government didn’t discuss the issue during its session on Wednesday “because it is being solved at the level of involved ministers.”

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Miqati Pledges Lebanese Commitment to Protecting ‘Syrian Refugees’

Lebanon is committed to providing shelter to Syrians fleeing the unrest in their country, Prime Minister Najib Miqati said on Thursday, responding to concerns expressed by Washington.

"My approach to these refugees coming to Lebanon is purely humanitarian," Miqati told Agence France Presse, estimating their number at 5,000.

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Report: Syrian Salafists Holding ‘Secret’ Talks with Christian Officials in Lebanon

Syrian Salafists, who have escaped their country, are holding “secret” talks with Lebanese Christian officials to explain to them about their vision on a “civil, democratic and plural” state in Syria if President Bashar Assad’s regime collapses, informed sources said.

The sources told pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat published Thursday that the Salafists have so far held five meetings with Christian parties and Sunni leaderships.

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Clinton Says U.N. 'Abrogated its Responsibility' on Syria

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday slammed Russia and China for vetoing a U.N. Security Council resolution on Syria, saying the people of Syria "will not forget."

Clinton said the Council had "abrogated its responsibility" by failing to push through the European draft resolution that would have threatened possible action against Syrian President Bashar Assad over a crackdown on protests.

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Ban 'Regrets' U.N. Council's Failure on Syria Resolution

U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon "regrets" the Security Council's failure to agree a resolution on Syria and believes there is a "moral obligation to prevent further bloodshed," his spokesman said Wednesday.

"The secretary general regrets that the Security Council has not been able to agree and hopes that it will overcome its divisions and find a collective way to address the situation," spokesman Martin Nesirky said of Russia and China's veto of a European-backed resolution on Syria.

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