PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) – More than 40 Islamist militants and two soldiers have been killed in the latest fighting in Pakistan’s troubled northwest near the Afghan border, paramilitary force officials said on Tuesday.

Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad has issued a decree to set up diplomatic ties with Lebanon and open an embassy.

The summit between Lebanese President Michel Suleiman and the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been heralded by some observers as ushering in a new era for Syria and Lebanon.