image credit: timesofmalta.com

In Syria, the violence grinds on, spiking recently, as rebel groups attempt to topple Bashar al-Assad’s presidency.

Lebanon’s Daily Star reports “constant shelling ... like carpet bombing” in Damascus.

Israel’s Haaretz describes the rise of one rebel group, the "Beloved of Allah" Brigade.

Turkey’s Hürriyet Daily News writes that a Syrian attack on its neighbor “would be madness,” and yet several shells have landed in a border town.

And according to the Moscow Times, Vladimir Putin, who has enjoyed a cordial relationship with both Syria and Turkey, "fears that Moscow could lose out after Assad's departure."