Assad's government

Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad in Moscow, the Kremlin announced on Thursday.

In the talks, the first since March 2023, Putin highlighted his concerns over the situation in the Middle East, which he said was "tending to escalate," in opening remarks between the pair which were aired on state television on Thursday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted Syrian leader Bashar Assad in the Kremlin on Wednesday for talks that focused on rebuilding Syria after a devastating civil war and efforts to stabilize the region.

Syrian President Bashar Assad arrived in Moscow on March 14, where he is scheduled to meet top ally Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Syria's top government negotiator said on Friday his team was quitting U.N.-led peace talks in Geneva and might not return next week, blaming the opposition's rejection of any role for President Bashar al-Assad in a transition, reported Reuters.

The European Union imposed sanctions on 16 Syrian scientists and military officials on July 17 for their suspected involvement in a chemical attack in northern Syria in April which killed scores of civilians.

The banknote features Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's portrait and there are already several theories as to what this might mean for the ongoing civil war between Assad's government and domestic opposition forces.

The United States has evidence the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has built a crematorium at a large military prison outside the capital Damascus, a State Department official said on May 15.

The Syrian government on May 16 denied the accusations.

The United States has evidence the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has built a crematorium at a large military prison outside the capital Damascus, a State Department official said on May 15.

President Donald Trump's administration accused Russia on Tuesday of trying to shield Syria's government from blame for a deadly gas attack, as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson brought a Western message to Moscow condemning its support for President Bashar al-Assad.

Victims of a suspected chemical attack in Syria appeared to show symptoms consistent with reaction to a nerve agent, the World Health Organization said on April 5. 

"Some cases appear to show additional signs consistent with exposure to organophosphorus chemicals, a category of chemicals that includes nerve agents," WHO said in a statement, putting the death toll at at least 70.