Latest fromSyria

How did schoolgirls become radicalised?
The headteacher of the school attended by three British schoolgirls who are believed to have flown to Turkey to join Isis in Syria reiterated yesterday that police have no evidence the missing pupils had been radicalised there.

Police failed to alert families of Isis recruits - lawyer
The police and intelligence agencies faced demands for an inquiry over how three young British schoolgirls were able to head for Syria.

Turks raid Isis territory for King's body
Tanks, drones and planes joined hundreds of Turkish soldiers in a night raid into Isis-occupied Syria to evacuate the tomb of a revered Ottoman figure.

'Come home. We miss you.'
The father of one of three schoolgirls who are believed to have travelled to Syria to join Isis says her siblings "cannot stop crying".

Life in Isis: Blood & boredom
When Isis took over Raqqa, a wave of black swept over the city. It's turned into a grim prison for residents - with no escape in sight.

Runaway girls with Isis, says spy report
Three British "jihadi brides" who ran away from home to join fighters from Isis were believed to have crossed the Turkish border into Syria.

Alexander Gillespie: Joining war on Isis a complex call
There is no crime of war, nor crime against humanity that they have not committed, writes Alexander Gillespie. But what is NZ's risk in getting involved?

Anatomy of a failed Isis hostage rescue
Last June the US tried a bold rescue mission to gather hostages taken by Isis. It failed. All the hostages have since died. Was the White House to blame?

Isis executes man for 'sorcery'
Isis militants are reported to have publicly beheaded a man after finding him guilty of practicing “sorcery”.

Watchdog warns over ignoring rights
Governments increasingly view human rights as "a luxury" they can ill afford, Human Rights Watch said yesterday.

Kurds claim Kobane clear of Isis
Kurdish militias claimed to have driven Isis (Islamic State) jihadists from the Syrian town of Kobane, after an intense four-month battle that killed thousands but captured the world's imagination.

Australian politician's war on Isis investigated
An Australian politician is under investigation after allegedly travelling to Syria to join Kurdish forces in the fight against Islamist extremists.

McCully condemns 30 civilian deaths in Ukraine
Foreign Minister Murray McCully has condemned the killing of up to 30 civilians in Eastern Ukraine over the weekend and called on Russia to intervene.

McCully to go to Jordan to discuss Syria, Isis
Foreign Minister Murray McCully is to travel to Jordan to discuss the crisis in Syria and the on-going threat of the Islamic State terror group.

Isis publishes list of punishments
Islamic State has published a list of punishments ranging from 80 lashes for drinking alcohol and losing a hand for theft, to death for committing blasphemy.

Editorial: 'Club's' rules of engagement not set in stone
The Prime Minister has told a BBC interviewer New Zealand's military contribution to the war against jihadists in Iraq and Syria is "the price of the club".

'That is my daughter'
The devastated father of France's most wanted woman has handed himself in to police, declaring: "That is my daughter."

Italians save 970 Syrian refugees
Nearly 1000 refugees were safely brought ashore in Italy yesterday after being abandoned by suspected smugglers on a merchant ship.

NZ jihadist broadcasts location
A Kiwi jihadist who claims to be fighting in Syria with Isis has been mistakenly broadcasting his exact location after forgetting to turn off his phone's tracking function.

West can't rely on a White Knight
There is a scene in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass in which Alice meets the White Knight who is wearing full armour and riding a horse which he keeps falling off.

Living conditions worsening as services collapse
Isis' vaunted exercise in state-building appears to be crumbling as living conditions deteriorate across the territories under its control.

Father begs son's Isis captors for mercy
The father of a Jordanian pilot captured by Isis after his plane crashed pleaded for his son's release, as reports emerged that the jihadists were preparing to publicly execute him.

Australia charges Kiwi with Syria fight plans
A man accused of obtaining a New Zealand passport as he prepared to fight in Syria will appear in an Australian court today.

Girl trying to join Isis hauled off plane
A 15-year-old was prevented from joining Isis by British police who hauled her off a plane at Heathrow just as it was due to take off.

Aid worker likely killed by gunshot
Peter Kassig, the American aid worker murdered by Isis (Islamic State) in Syria, may have been killed by a gunshot wound rather than beheading, analysis has suggested.

Australian women off to be jihadi brides: report
Intelligence agencies believe a teenager and her 20-year-old friend have become the first Australian women to join terrorists in Syria and offer themselves as jihadi brides.

Anna Penketh: Fighting for Allah? It beats being on the dole
I was in Normandy, talking to the former neighbours of a French jihadist last seen slitting the throat of a Syrian captive in an Islamic State (Isis) militant video.

British father snatches son from Isis
The father of a teenager from Cardiff is thought to be the first Briton to have rescued his son from the jihadist group Islamic State.