Education directorate says teaching Russian will help bolster the educational system due to the language’s prominence on the internet, loyalist newspaper Al-Watan writes
Syria’s foreign minister voices approval of Russian plan to establish de-escalation zones but rejects role of U.N.-led international forces in monitoring cease-fire, state media reports
Online statement by the Kurdish forces claims around 20 of the dead were of Turkish origin, according to opposition website Zaman al-Wasl
Young Syrians hide in fear of forced recruitment as the regime scrambles to replace its fallen soldiers on the fighting fronts, opposition outlet writes
Rebel leader Abou Ammar says the international community’s disregard for Tehran and Moscow’s role in Syria will result in an expansion of the conflict beyond Syria’s borders, Alsouria Net writes
Coalition members vote to elect prominent Syrian dissident and pro-reformist as leader of the Istanbul-based opposition bloc
Russian-sponsored deal will involve the forced relocation of around 8,000 people to Idleb and Aleppo provinces, opposition outlet writes
Saudi-owned Al-Hayat reports rebel delegation approves plan but chooses to walk out of negotiations in protest at Assad regime’s continued bombardment of opposition areas
Russian-authored memorandum will enforce weapons-free zones in four areas of the country in order to restore infrastructure and services while allowing for the return of displaced people
New recruits in the Turkish-trained force receiving 600 Turkish lira a month according to sources, opposition website reports
Media adviser to Turkey’s president threatens to hit Americans patrolling the southern border days after U.S. forces arrived in the Kurdish region of northern Syria, Qatari-owned Al-Arabi Al-Jadid reports
Serving as a battleground for countless foreign and ideological belligerents, the greatest danger facing Syria is the fragmentation and polarization of its society, Walid al-Bunni writes
Russian delegation also holds bilateral meetings in the Kazakh capital with Iranians and the United States, Syrian state media reports
Armed opposition gives preliminary approval of Russian plan involving the establishment of “tension reduction” zones in Idleb province, north of Homs city, Eastern Ghouta and the country’s south
The flooding of the labor market in southern Turkish cities has resulted in widespread exploitation of Syrian refugees, who sometimes work for $3 a day, opposition outlet writes
Opposition website speaks to source who claims first batch of detainees – which include those sentenced for violent crimes – will be sent to fight on the Deir-ez-Zor front against ISIS
Russian president stresses importance of U.N. role during meeting with Merkel in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi, government media reports
Gen. Ali Abdullah Ayoub says Iran, Russia and Hezbollah are the only forces who can foil the conspiracy against Syria, government outlet reports
Moscow hails phone call between leaders as constructive and ‘business-like,’ with the Russian president also urging caution on U.S. policy toward North Korea, Saudi-owned newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat reports
Syrian human rights lawyer says evidence exists tying members of the ruling family to war crimes, opposition site Sada al-Sham writes
