Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu had a phone conversation with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, June 26 as preparations for the Geneva II conference to find a path to a solution for the deadlock in Syria are ongoing.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces have retaken a town on the Lebanese border as they press an offensive against rebels in a conflict that has now cost more

UN peacekeepers will start operations in Mali on July 1 after the UN Security Council gave the green light on Tuesday for the mission, which will be the world body’s third largest when fully deployed by the end of this year, envoys and officials said.