1- The Russian government says it is sending two planes to Lebanon to evacuate Russians from Syria, the first such effort since the uprising against Syrian President Bashar Assad began in March 2011 2- Residents of central Damascus said they spent Sunday night without power as rebels fought Syrian troops half a mile from the Old City in the heart of the capital. The power went out all over the city including areas that have usually been ok said a resident, who asked not to be named for security reasons. More than 60,000 people have been killed, according to United Nations estimates, in the longest and bloodiest of the Arab Spring revolts 3- The gas plant at In Amenas is giving up its secrets as Algerian special forces picking their way through the vast complex find dozens of bodies, some charred beyond recognition in the bloody end-game to one of the worst hostage crises in years. Algerian sources said the attackers had come from Libya, but two of the fighters whose bodies were recovered appeared to be Canadian 4- US drone airstrike on a car east of Yemen’s capital of Sana’a Monday killed two suspected Al-Qaeda militants and wounded three others, two of them seriously, according to security officials. 5- President Barack Obama on Monday vowed to renew “strong alliances” around the world, saying that the United States was committed to finding ways to build a “peaceful world.”
“America will remain the anchor of strong alliances in every corner of the globe,” Obama said from the Capitol steps as he was inaugurated for a second term.