Opposition groups announced on Thursday that the confirmed death toll from five years of civil war in Syria now exceeds 220,000, with millions more missing, wounded and displaced. Meanwhile, in neighboring Iraq, the Islamic State terror militia was poised on Thursday to overrun the city of Ramadi, provincial capital of Anbar Province, reversing the momentum from the re-conquest of Tikrit earlier this month by government troops and Iranian-backed Shi’ite militias. An official in Ramadi described the situation there as “catastrophic” with several neighborhoods already devastated by the fighting, while aid groups said the civilian population has mostly fled. Meanwhile, Jordanian troops have reinforced their eastern border with Anbar province as Western officials have voiced strong concern for oil infrastructure in the area. However, the attention of the major powers is largely shifting to the savage conflict in Yemen. Read More
