Doha seeks emergency Syria meeting as Aleppo bombardment continues

Doha has called for an emergency meeting of Arab League envoys to discuss the Syrian regime's deadly airstrikes on the war-torn city of Aleppo.

Qatar's permanent envoy at the Cairo-based pan-Arab body has requested holding "a meeting to discuss the dangerous escalation in the city of Aleppo and the Syrian regime forces' massacres against civilians" there, a Qatar News Agency statement said.

The request comes after Russia said it will not ask the Syrian regime it backs to halt air raids on Aleppo, which has been divided between regime control in the west and rebel control in the east since 2012.

OPEC Unglued: Saudi Arabia Won’t Freeze Oil Growth Unless Iran Has To

No Iran, no deal

Oilfield

The much ballyhooed Doha, Qatar, meetings to freeze production among some OPEC and non-OPEC members, such as Russia, ended without agreement April 17.

The stumbling block: Saudi Arabia’s unwillingness to go forward on holding production steady without cooperation from Iran. After sanctions related to development of nuclear capabilities were lifted in January, Iran has been trying to ramp up volumes. The country's ability to sell oil on the global market had been hobbled since 2011.

By midday April 18, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) had fallen by about 3%. But Doha was a scene reminiscent of Lucy’s propping up a football in Charles Schulz’s famous "Peanuts" comic strip. WTI prices hit more than $42 per barrel April 13 before a more jaded Charlie Brown figured out who was propping up the market.

Crude Oil Price: Doha talks fail, new attempt to reach production agreement possible in June

Oil producing constructions did not manage to sign an agreement to freeze oil production at the January level following six hours of negotiations in Doha on Sunday, but they might hold another round of negotiations in June, Nigerian Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu told reporters.

OPEC and non-OPEC members will probably hold negotiations in June, he said.

Participants in the meeting, including the Nigerian minister and Oman Oil and Gas Minister Muhammad al-Rumhi, said countries need more time to agree on the conditions of an oil production freeze.

BREAKING: Israel to expand Gaza ground offensive says army; Abbas, Meshaal to meet Sunday to discuss Gaza truce

*An Ongoing Clash Between Hamas Gunmen and Israeli troops on the Lebanese border with Palestine!

*2 More Israeli Soldiers Were Killed In Gaza In Two Separate Incidents Overnight Saturday

Israeli army says it will expand Gaza ground offensive as the bloodiest conflict since 2009 entered its 13th day with a death toll of over 350. 

"This evening, the ground phase of Operation Protective Edge expands, as additional forces join the effort to combat terror in the Gaza Strip and establish a reality in which Israeli residents can live in safety and security," the army said in a statement.

Two more Israeli soldiers killed Saturday, bringing the total number of IDF fatalities to 5 since ground offensive began Thursday.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal to meet Sunday to discuss Gaza truce, officials say.

Also President Mahmoud Abbas and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will meet on Sunday to try to reach a ceasefire agreement with Israel to bring an end to 12 days of warfare, a senior Qatari source told Reuters. Due to take place in Doha, the meeting will be headed by the Gulf state's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, who has been acting as a "channel of communication" between Hamas and the international community, said the senior source familiar with the matter.