- City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
- Dubai 04:57 06:11 12:27 15:53 18:37 19:51
A cousin of Syrian Vice President Farouk al-Shara has defected, Al-Arabiya television reported on Thursday, broadcasting a statement in which he called on members of the Syrian army to join the "revolution".
"The cousin of the Syrian Vice President Farouk al-Shara announces his defection in an exclusive recording via Al-Arabiya," the news anchor read after the broadcast. It identified the speaker as Yarab al-Shara.
During the broadcast Al Arabiya had scrolled a headline bar declaring that "Shara" had defected.
Syria president's brother lost leg in attack
The brother of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad lost one leg in an attack on the country's security cabinet in Damascus in July, a Western diplomat and a Gulf-based source said on Thursday.
"We heard that he (Maher al-Assad) lost one of his legs during the explosion, but don't know anymore," the diplomat told Reuters.
A Gulf source confirmed the report: "He lost one of his legs. The news is true."
Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.