In fluorescent uniforms, dozens of inmates blink in the afternoon sun as they line up in the yard for lunch, the low murmur of their chatter punctuated suddenly by a solitary plaintive cry.

"This is horrible!" the voice cries out, before another quickly follows: "We aren't criminals!"

Israel said its warplanes struck several targets in Syria early Friday, prompting retaliatory missiles launches, in the most serious incident between the two countries since the Syrian conflict erupted six years ago.

In Aleppo, portraits of Russian President Vladimir Putin hang shoulder-to-shoulder with those of his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad, signalling Moscow's rise at the expense of Damascus's other ally, Iran.

The rivalry between the two primary backers of the Syrian government is becoming increasingly palpable, according to Syrian officials and a Russian analyst.

US President Donald Trump may not be popular in much of the Muslim world but he has been embraced by Saudi Arabia and, in turn, has reached out to the oil-rich kingdom.

It was the year that ended centuries of royal rule, brought two revolutions, ushered in Soviet domination and changed the course of Russian history irrevocably.

Peaceful protests against the regime of President Bashar Assad began in March 2011. They were harshly repressed, prompting an armed uprising that descended into a complex nationwide conflict.

Russia this year marks the 100th anniversary of the 1917 February and October revolutions that saw the Bolsheviks come to power, dismantling the Tsarist empire and paving the way to the Soviet Union's creation. 

Rolling around 200 Marines backed with howitzers into northern Syria, the United States is shifting from working quietly behind the scenes in Syria's conflict, turning instead toward overt displays of U.S. force in an attempt to shape the fight.

The latest deployment widens America's footprint in a highly toxic battlefield, with U.S. credibility and prestige on the line. It also risks drawing troops into a long and costly war with unpredictable outcomes.

South Korean President Park Geun-Hye is one of a long list of world leaders to have gone through an impeachment process or forced to resign following legal proceedings against them.

Not all impeachment proceedings are successful: The best-known survivor is probably former US president Bill Clinton, who remained in office despite an attempt to remove him owing to a sex scandal in 1999.

Turkish politicians are using a spate of cancelled rallies in Germany to stir up nationalist feeling ahead of next month's referendum on boosting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's powers, analysts say. 

Since last week, German and Turkish politicians have traded barbs over the banning of events by Turkish officials visiting Germany in a bid to boost support ahead of the April 16 vote on whether to create an executive presidency in Turkey.