Iranian Council: Ex-President Rafsanjani Unfit To Run Again
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Middle East
Assad Regime Agrees To Attend Peace Conference, Russia Says
()Russia and the U.S. have been trying to set up talks aimed at ending more than two years of brutal fighting in Syria. What's still unclear, however, is who would speak for the opponents of President Bashar Assad's regime.
The Two-Way
Two Key Candidates Barred From Seeking Iran's Presidency()
May 21, 2013 The Guardian Council, which vets all candidates, approved eight names, but left out an influential former president and a top aide to the current president. Their exclusion gives establishment-friendly candidates a clear path to the presidency in the June 14 election.
Parallels
Iran's 'Zahra' Tells Alternate Tale Of Presidential Campaign()
May 20, 2013 What do you do when you can't openly wage a campaign for the presidency? Some Iranians inside and outside the country have turned to the heroine of an online graphic novel who has embarked on a virtual campaign.
The Two-Way
Syrian Troops Target Key Rebel-Held Town()
May 19, 2013 Qusair is a strategically important town that lies between Homs, where the Syrian uprising began two years ago, and the Lebanese border. If President Bashar Assad's troops – reportedly backed by Hezbollah fighters — regain the town, they would control an important route from the coast to the capital, Damascus.
The Two-Way
Bashar Assad: A Political Solution In Syria Is 'Unreal' ()
May 18, 2013 The Syrian president also left no room for his departure. "The captain of a ship doesn't flee when faced with a storm," he said during an interview with an Argentine newspaper.
