Istanbul protests the Houla massacre.
Just two days after government shelling killed 116 people, including at least 32 children, in the central town of Houla, Russia blocked a harsh UN denunciation of the Assad government and (more alarmingly) OK’ed an arms shipment to Syria that should arrive by next weekend. Moscow says that corpses found knifed to death and shot at point-blank range—facts the British and others contest—indicate the involvement of what the Syrian government maintains are “armed terrorist groups” operating in the country. According to the Guardian, both Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Obama will push Putin to support a transition plan for Syria, but seems Russia is not yet ready to give up its closest friend and ally in the Middle East.
