BREAKING NEWS

Report: Pro-Assad militia kills Syrian mediators in Homs

BEIRUT - Gunmen loyal to President Bashar Assad shot dead at least six mediators sent to try to reconcile warring sectarian groups in the province of Homs, where people on opposing sides in Syria's war had until now been able to coexist, residents said on Tuesday.
The negotiators were from the National Reconciliation Committee, which the government set up to foster talks in a two-year conflict that has taken more than 100,000 lives.
The killings, which happened on Monday evening in the village of Hajar al-Abyad, highlight the growing challenge of mediating between towns held by rebel groups and those controlled by pro-Assad militias known as "shabbiha".