a severe water shortage in Damascus since 22 December. The government says rebels spoiled the water source with diesel fuel, forcing it to cut supplies to the capital.

Surely a few people "fleeing" (to the government side) "as Assad's forces bombs" are way more important than 5 million people in Damascus without access to water. That the treatment facility is destroyed seems also unimportant.

All the above papers have been extremely concerned about every scratch to any propaganda pimp who had claimed to be in then rebel held east-Aleppo. They now show no concern at all for 5 million Syrians in Damascus who have been without water for 10 days and will likely be so for the rest of the month.

Posted by b on January 2, 2017 at 19:42 UTCBEIRUT - Thousands of people demonstrated in Beirut on Thursday against the government's management of a dire economy in one of Lebanon's biggest protests in years, leading the Cabinet to pull a proposed new levy on WhatsApp calls.

Protesters blocked roads across Lebanon with burning tires, broadcasts showed, the second time in less than a month Lebanon has seen demonstrations expressing anger at the political elite.

The demonstrations have been fueled by stagnant economic conditions exacerbated by a financial crisis in one of the world's most heavily indebted states. The government is trying to find ways to bring down its gaping budget deficit.

Earlier, the Cabinet had unveiled a new revenue raising measure, agreeing a charge of 20 cents per day for calls via voice over internet protocol (VoIP), used by