– Turkey said it will support a cease-fire plan in Syria that calls for a cessation of hostilities though “at least” the upcoming three-day Islamic holiday.
– Syrian government forces pounded a northern city recently liberated by rebel troops yesterday. More than 40 civilians, including women and children, were reportedly killed in the attack.
– Reuters reports: A huge car bomb exploded in a street in central Beirut during rush hour on Friday, killing at least two people and wounding 46.
– The Washington Post reports: The CIA is urging the White House to approve a significant expansion of the agency’s fleet of armed drones, a move that would extend the spy service’s decade-long transformation into a paramilitary force, U.S. officials said.
– The suspected ringleader of the attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi, Ahmed Abu Khattala, does not appear to fear being arrested or captured by Libyan authorities. Abu Khattala “spent two leisurely hours on Thursday evening at a crowded luxury hotel, sipping a strawberry frappe on a patio and scoffing at the threats coming from the American and Libyan governments,” the New York Times reports.
– Army commanders are expecting more American soldiers to struggle with mental health problems as the wars in the Middle East wind down. “We’ll have more of our soldiers back, and those soldiers will have more time at home to realize all is not well,” said Brig. Gen. Timothy P. McGuire.
Previous in TP Security
By clicking and submitting a comment I acknowledge the ThinkProgress Privacy Policy and agree to the ThinkProgress Terms of Use. I understand that my comments are also being governed by Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, or Hotmail’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policies as applicable, which can be found here.