Syrian security forces are alleged to have executed dozens of people belonging to the Alawite minority in the coastal province of Latakia, according to a war monitoring group.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said 162 civilians have been killed in "field executions" in the region - a heartland of deposed president Bashar al-Assad, who also belongs to the Alawite sect.

An interior ministry source told the country's official news agency Sana that "individual violations" had occurred on the coast and pledged to put a stop to them.

BBC News has not been able to verify claims that the killings were committed by the forces of Syria's new rulers.

US President Donald Trump has reportedly been exploring ways to ease sanctions on Russia as part of a broader effort to facilitate peace negotiations over Ukraine, Bloomberg has reported.

The US has imposed multiple rounds of sanctions on Moscow since 2022, targeting major financial institutions and the energy sector in response to the escalation of the Ukraine conflict. Last week, Trump stated that he is “strongly considering” imposing additional banking sanctions and tariffs on Russia to push for a peace settlement.

However, Bloomberg has claimed, citing anonymous sources, that Trump’s advisers are also looking at what sanctions the US could lift or tweak in order to encourage Moscow to agree to a ceasefire. These steps reportedly include potentially lifting the $60-per-barrel price cap on Russian oil as part of a sanctions relief plan.

Donald Trump pitched a deal to the bosses of America’s Big Oil firms last year. Over a dinner of chopped steak at Mar-a-Lago in April, he told his guests: “You all are wealthy enough,” The Washington Post reported him as saying, “that you should raise $US1 billion to return me to the White House.”

He promised to reverse dozens of environmental rules and prevent any new ones should he win the election. He said that giving $US1 billion would be a “deal”, according to the masthead, because of the tax and regulation they would avoid.

Shyster in chief? How Trump is making a mockery of good governance

The Australian War Memorial has dismissed calls to stop taking money from the world's largest weapons manufacturers, despite outrage from critics and historians that it defiles the commemoration of the nation's war dead.

A Four Corners investigation has also found that the memorial's chairman, and former politician, Kim Beazley has paid roles with two multinational arms companies.

Those links are not disclosed on the war memorial's website.

Taking weapons makers' 'dirty money' not a problem for war memorial chairman Kim Beazley

By Mark Willacy

Russia has told Australia there will be "grave consequences" if it puts "boots on the ground" in Ukraine as part of a Western peacekeeping operation proposed by UK Prime Minister Kier Starmer.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last week unexpectedly left open the possibility of Australian troops joining a "coalition of the willing" in the war-torn country to enforce any peace deal brokered between Russia and Ukraine.

Trump takes control of the White House press pack, giving supportive outlets new prominence.

https://www.abc.net.au/mediawatch/episodes/pool/105033568

WE AGREE… TRUMP’S WHITE HOUSE IS SHOWING PREFERENCES FOR RIGHT-WING MEDIA OUTLETS — UNLIKE THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION THAT WAS FAVORING LEFT-WING MEDIA (APART FROM ONE ANNOYING REPORTER, PETER DOUCY FROM FOX NEWS) FOR PROPAGATING ITS HUMONGOUS JOE BIDEN/BLINKEN/SULLIVAN MEGA-LIES…

SINCE THE INCEPTION OF THIS SITE, WE HAVE TOYED WITH THE CONCEPT THAT THE MOST SUCCESSFUL HUMAN SPECIES INVENTION WAS DECEIT. WE HAVE ALSO OFTEN DEMONSTRATED THAT OUR MOST POPULAR INVENTION WAS STUPIDITY. 

COMBINE DECEIT AND STUPIDITY AND WE INVENT BELIEFS (THE TRUTH)....

FROM THEN ON, THESE BELIEFS APPLIED TO OUR COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS MORPH INTO OPINIONS WHICH FOR ALL INTENT AND PURPOSES ARE STYLISED BELIEFS, SOMEWHAT IN SEARCH OF THE TRUTH WHICH HAS BEEN A DECEITFUL PHILOSOPHICAL PURSUIT SINCE PEOPLE HAVE BEEN SELLING SNAKE OIL.

• Thousands of Ukrainian troops who stormed into Russia’s Kursk region last August are almost surrounded by Russian forces there in a major blow to Kyiv, which hoped to use its presence as leverage over Moscow in any peace talks, Reuters has reported, citing open source maps.

French Prime Minister Franсois Bayrou has rejected the idea of consulting the public on critical defense decisions, asserting that such matters fall under government responsibility.

In an interview on CNews and Europe 1, journalist Sonia Mabrouk asked Bayrou whether the French people should have a say in major defense policies, including the financial burden of increased military spending and the shift towards a “war economy.”

“Maybe it’s time to consult the French? It’s really the right of the people to dispose of themselves,” she suggested.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has taken full creative control of the James Bond franchise after longtime producer Barbara Broccoli reportedly called his executives “f**king idiots,” the Hollywood Reporter wrote on Friday.

According to insiders, Bezos reacted immediately, ordering her removal at any cost, which ultimately led to a $1 billion deal. As a result, Amazon now holds full control over the future of James Bond.

Amazon acquired MGM in 2022, gaining distribution rights to the films, but creative control remained with Eon Productions under Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson. The duo resisted Amazon’s proposed spin-offs, including a Moneypenny series and a female-led 007 project, preferring to maintain James Bond’s traditional narrative.

Ukraine updates: Fatal Russian strikes in Donetsk, Kharkiv
Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy has slammed "vile and inhumane" Russian strikes that killed and wounded civilians overnight. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has called the Russians "barbarians." DW has more.

Donald Trump’s return to the White House is shaping up to be nothing short of a political revolution. The new administration is rapidly dismantling the old order, purging the ruling elite, reshaping both domestic and foreign policy, and cementing changes that will be difficult to reverse – even if his opponents regain power in future elections.

A new American empire: Trump, Russia, and the end of globalism
The US is resetting, but not how the world expected
By Vasily Kashin

A surprise revenue gain is giving Labor more options to help households in the federal budget to be delivered on March 25, creating room for a new round of energy bill relief before an election that will be held in May.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed the budget date and election plan after top cabinet ministers signed off on major policies, intensifying a contest on economic policy with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton.

Labor sets up energy bill relief in March budget for May election
By David Crowe, Shane Wright and Paul Sakkal

The 2024 election between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump makes clear that the U.S. has two right-wing parties and no effective left-wing opposition.

Trump and the GOP support regressive tax policies and fervent anti-immigrant measures while the Democrats offer a Republican-light domestic economic program combined with hawkish foreign policies that earned Kamala Harris the endorsement of neo-conservative hardliner Dick Cheney.

Revolt of the Rich: Wealthy Elites Have Waged A Fifty Year Class War—and Won
By Jeremy Kuzmarov

US President Donald Trump pledged to go ahead with his campaign of "swift and unrelenting action" in reorienting the country’s economy, immigration and foreign policy in his address to Congress.

"It seems he [Trump] wants more and more peace, urging Zelensky to conclude a ceasefire agreement and sign the US-Ukraine minerals deal,”Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski, a retired US AirForce official and former analyst for the US Department of Defense, told Sputnik. 

Kwiatkowski stressed that Trump didn’t talk about Europe or NATO other than noting that they depend on the US and use American money, "and yet they seem not to want peace."