Syrian troops with tanks and helicopters slaughtered more than 150 people in a central village, rights activists said Friday, casting a dark shadow over efforts to stop the bloodshed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday that Syria needed dialogue between the regime and opposition rather than foreign intervention to ensure a lasting peace.

President Michel Suleiman is set to travel to France on Thursday where is expected to hold talks with his French counterpart Francois Hollande to highlight the importance of Lebanese-French ties and tackle the latest developments in Lebanon and the region, especially Syria, reported the daily al-Mustaqbal on Sunday.

Diplomatic sources said that Hollande will likely encourage Suleiman to maintain the government’s policy of distancing itself from the Syrian crisis.

West African presidents met Saturday with Malian civil leaders in a bid to secure a national unity government that can tackle a power grab by Islamist militants in the country's desert north.

However, Mali's president and prime minister were not there, northern representatives walked out, and supporters of the military coup that threw Mali into turmoil in March staged a counter demonstration.

The U.N. Security Council on Friday strongly condemned a rebel ambush on a U.N. peacekeeper patrol in Democratic Republic of Congo which left an Indian soldier dead.

The 15-nation Security Council and U.N. leader Ban Ki-moon released statements calling for rebel groups in eastern DR Congo to "immediately" cease all violence.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle called Friday for a non-military U.N. resolution and tough sanctions as a way of piling pressure on the Syrian regime to stop a deadly crackdown on opposition.

At a meeting in Paris seeking to coordinate Western and Arab efforts to stop the violence, he stressed that a peaceful and democratic transition "excludes a political role for (President Bashar) Assad."

United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon Derek Plumbly attended a tripartite meeting held at al-Naqoura crossing between the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon and senior Lebanese and Israel officials.

UNIFIL Commander Maj.-Gen. Paolo Serra presided the meeting on Wednesday.

The European Union on Wednesday announced new talks between senior EU and Iranian diplomats on Tehran's disputed nuclear drive following expert-level closed door talks in Istanbul this week.

Technical experts from Iran and major world powers gathered Tuesday in Istanbul for closed door talks on Tehran's disputed nuclear program, a European diplomat said.

The meeting between nuclear physics experts from Iran and the major powers known as P5+1 -- the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany -- takes place without the participation of diplomats, the source said.

The United States has moved new forces into the Gulf to keep strategic waterways open and strike deep within Iran in the event of a regional military escalation, the New York Times reported Tuesday.

The Times cited senior officials as saying the quiet build-up was aimed at reassuring Israel that Washington is serious about addressing Iran's nuclear program and keeping the Straits of Hormuz -- a key oil choke point -- open.