The leader of the militant group Hezbollah appealed for calm last night after 12 Lebanese Shia Muslims were abducted in neighbouring Syria.

The fatal shooting of Sheikh Abdul-Wahid by a soldier raised fears about the influence of the Assad regime over the border, reports Robert Fisk

Two people were killed and 15 others injured in street battles between pro- and anti-Syrian groups in the Lebanese capital overnight as the spiralling conflict in neighbouring Syria spilled across the border.

An international aid agency warned today that Syrian forces are targeting medical workers and patients who were wounded in the 14-month-old conflict, forcing doctors to scramble to help the injured in makeshift clinics.

Rebels killed 23 Syrian soldiers yesterday in battles around the town of Rastan, according to a rights group. The battles followed heavy army shelling of the town, in which opposition sources said at least nine people were killed.

Among the many heartening aspects of last year’s Arab uprisings was the visible role of women in the protests. These women might easily have looked to the writings of Wadad Makdisi Cortas for inspiration.

Field Day celebrates its sixth birthday on 2 June with its unique formula of pioneering line-up coupled with village fete mentality.

Syrian troops shelled a rebel-held town, sparking intense clashes that sent bloodied victims flooding into hospitals and clinics, activists said.

Homeland may have won plenty of plaudits but the Israeli original is even better, says Gerard Gilbert

Homeland won plaudits but the Israeli original is even better

Bahrain has arrested a prominent human rights activist and critic of the country's ruling family.

The Long View: Migrant workers from the subcontinent often live eight to a room in slums – even in oil-rich Kuwait

Mercenaries and diplomats, soldiers and journalists, politicians and hookers – they all came to Paddy's Bar. Some of the most powerful among the clientele were the diamond dealers whose profits had grown hugely as Sierra Leone suffered, a land torn apart by slaughter, rape and ritualised mutilations.

Last weekend Ali Shabaan was looking forward to his engagement party. Yesterday his fiancée stood at his graveside. By Robert Fisk