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Hello, I'm Katya Adler, host of the Global Story podcast from the BBC.
Each weekday we break down one big news story
with fresh perspectives from journalists around the world.
From artificial intelligence to divisive politics tearing our societies apart
from the movements of money
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Hello and welcome to NewsHour Live from the BBC World Service in London.
I'm Rebecca Kesby, and we begin the program today in Syria,
where aid agencies are reporting that more than 500 people have been killed in the past two days.
In the western Latakia and Tartus region along the Mediterranean coast,
fighting broke out between government forces
and gunmen loyal to the ousted former president Bashar al Assad in recent days.
Assad is from the minority Alawite community,
and there have been numerous reports that that community has been targeted,
with many civilians killed, including children.
Well, a spokesman for Syria's Defense Ministry, Colonel Hassan Abdul Ghani,
released a video statement calling on all individuals to lay down their arms.