
According to the resource, a new US Coalition base is being built in the area east of the city of Mejadin, near al-Omar, Syria's largest oil field.


Advocates of free speech warn that overzealous prosecutors and conservative judges are dialing back the clock in Spain, which began its experiment with democracy only after the death of the dictator Francisco Franco in 1975.
Disappointed at hearing the high court had upheld a prison sentence for Arenas, the mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, tweeted that these are "sad and dark times when you have to fight for something so obvious as #rappingisnotacrime."
Civil libertarians here say Spain is repurposing laws meant to stop incitement to terrorism to cover what should be protected political speech - including lyrics by rap artists, who often assume tough-guy poses and playact as marginalized, angry characters in their songs.
"These punishments, without a doubt, have a self-censoring effect," said Yolanda Quintana, secretary general for the Platform for the Defense of Freedom of Information in Madrid.




Comment: See also: Trump requests $4bln from Saudi King to destabilize Syria