ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland - Global leaders at the G-8 summit called for peace talks to resolve Syria’s civil war Tuesday, but made no mention of arming the rebels or what should happen to President Bashar Assad.

“We remain committed to achieving a political solution to the crisis based on a vision for a united, inclusive and democratic Syria,” said a final communique.

The document made no mention of Assad, whom Western leaders have said in the past said must step down as part of a resolution.

However, in an indication of some agreement, it did call on both sides to commit to “destroying and expelling” al-Qaeda-affiliated groups and removing “any other non-state actors linked to terrorism.”

President Barack Obama echoed that concern, saying it was important to build a strong opposition in Syria that could function if Assad loses power.

Isolated at the G-8, Russia's Vladimir Putin had clashed with other leaders over the conflict and resisted their attempts to get him to agree to anything that would imply Assad should step down or that Russia should tone down its support for Assad.

Obama and U.S. allies want Assad to cede power while Putin, whose rhetoric has become increasingly anti-Western since he was re-elected last year, believes that would be disastrous at a time when no clear transition plan exists.

Russia has been Assad's most powerful supporter as his forces struggle to crush an uprising in which an estimated 93,000 people have been killed since March 2011. He can also count on backing from Iran.

The United States, Turkey, and European and Gulf Arab states support the rebels, who have lost ground to Assad's troops in recent weeks.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, speaking on the summit sidelines, said earlier that Russia had refused to accept any mention of Assad's fate in the communique.

"This would be not just unacceptable for the Russian side, but we are convinced that it would be utterly wrong, harmful and would completely upset the political balance," Ryabkov said.

Slideshow: Syria uprising

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A look back at the conflict that has overtaken the country.

Launch slideshow

Russia and the United States agree the warring sides should be brought together to discuss Syria's future at a peace conference possibly as soon as July. 

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the leaders’ talks on the issue had been more successful than anticipated, given the strong differences between Russia and the West.

"We have a very different outcome and much better outcome than I thought we were going to have," Harper told reporters. Before the summit, Harper had said he feared Putin's support for Syria would make a G-8 agreement difficult.

"I think this was a very significant move on the part of Mr. Putin and the Russians," he said.

The United Nations says 93,000 people have been killed in Syria and 1.6 million Syrians have fled abroad. Lebanon, the smallest of Syria's neighbors, has taken in more than half a million Syrian refugees.

Related:

• Obama and Putin cite differences on Syria but say they want violence to end
• Obama announces extra $300 million in aid for Syrians, refugees
• US military officials say help for Syria likely to escalate gradually

This story was originally published on Tue Jun 18, 2013 12:18 PM EDT

KABUL, Afghanistan – U.S.-led troops handed complete control of security to Afghanistan authorities Tuesday – an act of faith in country’s fledgling police and army in the face of near-constant insurgent attacks.

The formal transfer of responsibility is major milestone in the process of withdrawal from the country, 12 years after NATO-led mission ISAF began its mission to end Taliban rule.

However, a botched car bomb that killed at least three civilians just before the official handover ceremony raising renewed questions about how the country’s 352,000-strong security forces will tackle the militant threat.

Most foreign combat troops will leave the country by the end of 2014, but international funding and humanitarian aid will continue - prolonging the political headache for President Barack Obama over America's involvement in the conflict.

“Today is a day for all Americans to take pride in the hard work our service members and their civilian counterparts are performing every day in Afghanistan,” Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said in a statement that called Tuesday’s handover a “critical milestone.”

Ordinary Afghans may be harder to convince.

“It is a good decision that the Afghan forces are taking the responsibility because it is their own country and they are the one who should be responsible for the security,” said Kabul restaurant owner Mohammad Faried, adding: “I still have doubts. If they do not have good weapons it will be hard for them to keep peace and stability in the country especially in the villages.”

Jawad Jalali / EPA

Afghan President Hamid Karzai, left, shakes hands with NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen prior to Tuesday's ceremony in Kabul.

The U.S. and its allies have yet to decide exactly how long troops will remain in Afghanistan beyond 2014, and what their role should be.

Earlier this month, retired four-star general John Allen called on the U.S. to keep a larger force in Afghanistan than the 8,000-12,000 reportedly being considered by U.S. officials.

Among the problems is a high desertion rate in local police forces, meaning thousands of new recruits are needed each month.

A Congressional research report published in April said the Obama administration was also concerned that “weak and corrupt governance” in Afghanistan would hamper the fight against the Taliban.

In additional The Afghan army has suffered a sharp rise in casualties since it began slowly assuming greater control of security, the BBC reported.  By comparison, international coalition casualties have been steadily falling since 2010, it said.

Afghans are now responsible for security in all districts of Afghanistan's 34 provinces, completing a transfer of power from NATO that began in 2011.

“Is a great day for us, not only for the Afghan government but also for the Afghan nation,” said Janan Mosazai, spokesperson for the country's ministry of foreign affairs. “It is a big day of honor.”

The U.S. military is by far the single biggest group within ISAF’s steadily-shrinking force of about 100,000 foreign troops [PDF link here.]

The security handover means the remaining US-led forces will play only a supporting role, providing help if needed but no longer taking the lead in tackling insurgent attacks.

"We will continue to help Afghan troops in operations if needed,” NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said at Tuesday’s ceremony. “But we will no longer plan, execute or lead those operations. And by the end of 2014, our combat mission will be completed. At that time, Afghanistan will be fully secured by Afghans.”

As combat troops are scaled down, the U.S. focus will shift to Special Operations forces who will advise the Afghan military on hunting down top insurgent or terrorist leaders.

On any day in Afghanistan, about 60 Special Operations teams are working with Afghan local police forces to provide security in villages, according to a New York Times report.

The target of Tuesday's suicide car bomb attack was prominent lawmaker and Shia Muslim cleric Mohammed Mohaqiq, police at the scene told The Associated Press.

Slideshow: Afghanistan: Nation at a crossroads

Anja Niedringhaus / AP

More than ten years after the beginning of the war, Afghanistan faces external pressure to reform as well as ongoing internal conflicts.

Launch slideshow

Gen. Mohammad Zahir, chief of the Kabul Criminal Investigation Division, told the AP three people were killed by the bombing and another 30 were wounded — including six bodyguards. Mohaqiq survived the attack, Reuters reported.

In March, Karzai publicly criticized the American presence in his country, causing embarrassment to U.S. defense secretary, Chuck Hagel, during his first visit to Kabul in the new role.

NBC News’ Alastair Jamieson contributed to this report.

Related:

• Taliban accused of beheading two young boys
• Full Afghanistan coverage from NBC News

This story was originally published on Tue Jun 18, 2013 11:06 AM EDT

U.S. and Taliban representatives will meet soon for the first time to begin what are expected to be long and complex negotiations for a peaceful settlement to the war in Afghanistan, senior Obama administration officials said Tuesday.

The officials told NBC News that the meeting will take place in the next several days in the Qatari capital of Doha. The Taliban will open an office there for the purpose of negotiating directly with the Afghan government, the officials said. A precise date was not announced.

"This is a key milestone on the way to the complete transition of responsibility for security to Afghans by the end of next year," a senior U.S. administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said via conference call after the announcement was made.

However, a senior Taliban official said "formal talks" would not begin immediately and any negotiations would be conditional on the release of Taliban commanders from Guantanamo Bay.

The talks, which follow numerous failed attempts to start peace negotiations, would represent the first time the U.S. and Taliban militants have met to discuss ending the war since the Afghanistan conflict started in 2001.

The negotiating conditions require the Taliban to break their ties with al Qaeda, end the violence and accept the Afghan constitution, especially the protections for women and minorities, the officials said.

But because of deep distrust between the Afghan government and the Taliban, the process will be “complex, long and messy,” one official said. The officials emphasized that expectations were low, but said the opening of Doha office was a crucial step for Afghanistan.

"We have long said that this conflict will likely not be won on the battlefield, and that is why we support the opening of this office," said one senior administration official.

As for the American government's role in the talks, the United States "will have a role in direct talks, but this is a negotiation that will have to be led by Afghans," another said.

According to a State Department spokesperson, special representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan Ambassador James Dobbins will meet on the U.S.'s behalf with the Taliban in the coming days. He departs Tuesday for Ankara, Turkey, and will then travel to Doha before going to Afghanistan and Pakistan. 

His trip will primarily be focused on reconciliation, said State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki.

"Our goal in Afghanistan continues to be to disrupt, dismantle and defeat al-Qaida, to ensure that the country can never again be a safe haven for terrorists. We're doing both at the same time, talking and winding down our fighting in the country," Psaki said.

Secretary of State John Kerry praised the decision to hold talks.

"We're very pleased with what has taken place," he said.

The disclosure came on the same day that international forces, led by the United States, handed over control for security of the entire country to Afghan security forces — a milestone after almost 12 years of war. Most foreign combat troops will leave the country by the end of 2014.

Obama administration officials also told NBC News that the U.S. is pursuing a prisoner exchange with the Taliban to secure the release of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, held for several years by the Haqqani network, considered a dangerous element of the Taliban.

The talks follow discussions held between Obama and Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai during a January visit to Washington, D.C., the officials said.

"This is a new development, a potentially significant development," said one official. "But peace is not at hand."

A senior Taliban official said they were “already in contact with the U.S., but to call it talks is premature.”

“For talks to begin, first the U.S. will have to release five Afghan Taliban commanders [held in Guantanamo Bay] and bring them to Qatar,” he said. “Then we can sit and start negotiations on how to set the agenda for formal talks."

“As of now, we are not going in to formal talks with the U.S. immediately,” he added.

The Taliban official said releasing the detained commanders would be a “first step” in restoring trust.

“Amir ul Momineen Mullah Omar [the Taliban’s leader] is not desperate for talks with the U.S. as the Afghan Taliban are victorious in the battlefield,” he said, adding that there would have to be “equal gains” from any talks that did take place.

Pakistan said it had played a “constructive and positive role” in arranging what it described as “important milestone in support of a peace process.”

"Pakistan welcomes the announcement of the opening of a Taliban office in Doha for the purpose of bringing peace to Afghanistan and the region,” a Pakistan foreign office spokesman said in a statement. “Pakistan also welcomes the start of direct peace talks between the U.S. and the Taliban. Pakistan has long called for a peaceful and negotiated solution to the Afghan conflict.”

NBC News' Elizabeth Chuck and Ian Johnston contributed to this report.

This story was originally published on Tue Jun 18, 2013 9:51 AM EDT

President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart — on opposite sides of a civil war but using delicate language about a difference of opinion — said Monday that they shared an interest in stopping the bloodshed in Syria, as the White House planned to announce more than $300 million in a new humanitarian aid package to go to the war-torn country and its neighbors. 

Obama and President Vladimir Putin met at the Group of Eight summit in Northern Ireland, their first time talking face to face in more than a year. 

The meeting came days after Obama angered Moscow by authorizing military help for the rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar Assad. The two-year conflict has left more than 90,000 people dead. Putin is Assad’s strongest ally. 

The newest round of humanitarian aid puts the total U.S. spending on relief efforts at $800 million. Less than half of Monday’s announced total will go to Syria, with the rest going to help neighboring countries who have taken on refugees, the White House said. The United States has contributed more to humanitarian aid during the civil war than any other country. 

“Of course our opinions do not coincide,” Putin said through an interpreter after the meeting with Obama. “But all of us have the intention to stop the violence in Syria.”

“Of course our opinions do not coincide,” Putin said through an interpreter after the meeting with Obama. “But all of us have the intention to stop the violence in Syria.”

Obama also chose careful words. He said that the two leaders “have differing perspectives on the problem, but we share an interest in reducing the violence.” Both presidents said they hoped to push the two sides in Syria to the bargaining table.

Putin criticized the West's position during talks with Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron on the eve of the summit, saying that the rebels were cannibals.

"I think you will not deny that one does not really need to support the people who not only kill their enemies, but open up their bodies, eat their intestines, in front of the public and cameras," Putin said at a tense joint news conference with Cameron on Sunday.

Peter Muhly / AFP - Getty Images

Barack Obama, wife Michelle and daughters Sasha and Malia are greeted by Joan Christie, The Queen's official representative in County Antrim, upon arrival at Belfast International Airport, Northern Ireland, on Monday.

The two leaders did, however, say they were on similar pages when it came to North Korea and Iran. Both men voiced cautious optimism about the election of Hassan Rowhani in Iran, offering hope that he will work with the U.S. and Russia to resolve the problems surrounding the country's attempts to develop nuclear weapons. 

Putin and Obama also said they had agreed to increase interaction with North Korea.

Following the bilateral meeting, the two countries announced they would hold another meeting in Moscow in September around the time of the Group of Twenty summit.

Besides the United States and Russia, Canada, Japan, Britain, France, Italy and Germany are members of the G-8, a group of the world’s wealthiest economies.

Before he sat down with Putin, Obama delivered a speech on sustaining Catholic-Protestant reconciliation 15 years after the U.S.-brokered Good Friday peace accord. He spoke in Belfast's Waterfront Hall, a glass-fronted building that would never have been built during the city's long era of car bombs that ended with a 1997 Irish Republican Army cease-fire.

In his speech, Obama said that the peace achieved in Northern Ireland — part of the United Kingdom, unlike the Republic of Ireland just south of the border — after decades of violence known as the Troubles was an example for those struggling to end violence around the world.

"Beyond these shores right now in scattered corners of the world there are people living in the grip of conflict, ethnic conflict, religious conflict, tribal conflicts," he said.  "And they are groping for a way to find a way to discover how to move beyond the heavy hand of history — to put aside the violence. ... And they're wondering perhaps if Northern Ireland can achieve peace we can too. So you're their blueprint to follow."

The G-8 summit was being held just minutes from the town of Enniskillen, a small town with a painful past.  In 1987, militants belonging to the Irish Republican Army bombed the town's annual memorial ceremony for British war veterans. The attack killed 11 people and injured 63.

In a sign of how much has changed, last year Queen Elizabeth made history by walking across the town’s narrow high street between the Protestant and Catholic churches which face one another, 25th anniversary of the bombing. It was the first time the queen had ever set foot in a Catholic church on the island of Ireland.

Obama stressed that maintaining the peace was a constant struggle:

“Whether you are a good neighbor to someone from the other side of past battles -- that's up to you. Whether you treat them with the dignity and respect they deserve -- that's up to you. Whether you let your kids play with kids who attend a different church -- that's your decision. Whether you take a stand against violence and hatred, and tell extremists on both sides that no matter how many times they attack the peace, they will not succeed -- that is in your hands. And whether you reach your own outstretched hand across dividing lines, across peace walls, to build trust in a spirit of respect -- that's up to you.”  

Obama was traveling with his wife, Michelle, who spoke before him in Belfast, and their two daughters.

In the afternoon, Obama, Cameron and European leaders launched negotiations for the world's most ambitious free-trade deal, promising that the eventual agreement would create thousands of new jobs and speed-up growth in the U.S. and European Union.

“America and Europe have done extraordinary things together before and I believe we can forge an economic alliance as strong as our diplomatic and security alliances, which of course, have been the most powerful in history,” Obama said at a press conference announcing the deal. 

Meanwhile, a British newspaper reported Britain intercepted telephone calls and monitored computers used by foreign ministers taking part in two high-level international meetings. 

The Guardian said some delegates from countries in the Group of 20 -- which comprises top economies around the world -- used Internet cafes that had been set up by British intelligence agencies to read their emails in London in 2009. The report was published hours before leaders of the G-8 countries -- all of which are in the G-20 -- started the Northern Ireland summit.

Earlier this month, the newspaper reported details of surveillance by the National Security Agency (NSA) of phone records and Internet data in the U.S. The newspaper said the evidence was contained in documents that were leaked by the former NSA contractor Edward Snowden.

Northern Ireland's police appear to be leaving little to chance in ensuring security around the Lough Erne resort just outside Enniskillen, County Fermanagh. More than 3,500 officers were drafted in from mainland Britain to Northern Ireland, bringing the total number of officers on duty each day of the summit to 8,000.

Army engineers helped set up steel fences and coiled razor wire for miles around the resort's lone road entrance.  

Only 2,000 protesters were expected to travel to the remote resort for Monday night's main planned demonstration. 

NBC News' Emma Ong, Andrew Rafferty, Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Related stories:

Derelict Northern Ireland shops get facelift ahead of G-8 summit

'Like a war movie': Painful past of the small town hosting the G-8 summit

This story was originally published on Mon Jun 17, 2013 3:18 PM EDT

LONDON -- British spies intercepted the phone calls of foreign politicians and delegates at the G-20 summit in 2009, according to documents provided to The Guardian by self-declared NSA leaker Edward Snowden, the newspaper reported Monday.

U.K. intelligence agency GCHQ also monitored the computers of delegates at the London conference and tried to capture their passwords, the newspaper said.

Among the foreign politicians targeted were then-President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, and Turkish finance minister, Mehmet Simsek, the newspaper said.

The report came hours before President Barack Obama and other world leaders from the G-8 countries - all of which are in the G-20 – were due to attend a two-day summit in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland.

Although espionage at international conferences has often been rumored, it is rare for evidence to be uncovered, The Guardian said.

It said the evidence was contained in classified documents shown to its reporters by Snowden, a U.S. citizen who worked for a private defense contractor and now faces a federal investigation into a string of embarrassing leaks about the National Security Agency and the PRISM surveillance program.

Snowden is reportedly in Hong Kong, where he told The Guardian that he was hoping to fight the U.S. government in the courts.

A spokesman for Britain’s foreign ministry declined to comment on the report. A spokesman for GCHQ said the agency never commented on intelligence matters.

Related:

• Edward Snowden, professed NSA leaker, may have few safe havens
• What we know about NSA leaker Edward Snowden
• Girlfriend of self-professed NSA leaker blogged that she felt 'lost at sea'

This story was originally published on Mon Jun 17, 2013 8:29 AM EDT

Lam Yik Fei / Getty Images

Workers clean Taksim Square after the crackdown action in Istanbul, Turkey. Istanbul has seen protests rage on for days.

A pair of Turkey’s labor unions said Sunday that they will hold a general strike Monday after riot police raided an Istanbul park and public square, firing plumes of powerful tear gas and water cannons at anti-government demonstrators.

Turkish police detained 441 people in connection with clashes in Istanbul on Sunday, an official at the city's bar association told Reuters on Monday. And an official from the Ankara bar association said 56 people were detained in the capital. 

The Confederation of Public Workers’ Unions (KESK) and the Confederation of Revolutionary Trade Unions (DISK) announced the day-long strike in a joint statement, Reuters reported.

“We had already taken a decision to go on strike if there was an intervention on the park. So tomorrow we will declare a strike for Monday,” Mustafa Turgut, a spokesman for KESK, said.

The workers’ walkout follows more than two weeks of bloody demonstrations against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and the ruling AK Party.

Protests Sunday put on display the rising tensions between Erdogan supporters and those demonstrating against him. Police continued to crackdown on Taksim Square, while Erdogan spoke to thousands of supporters just a few miles away.

"They say, 'Mr. prime minister, you are too harsh,' and some (call me) 'dictator'," Erdogan told supporters on Sunday. "What kind of a dictator meets with people who occupy Gezi Park as well as the sincere environmentalists?" he said, referencing a Thursday meeting with protest representatives.

The tumult was set off by the prime minister’s plan to build a replica of Ottoman-era barracks in Gezi Park, a decision that triggered a wider revolt against Erdogan's policies. Protesters and critics allege that the Turkish government has become increasingly authoritarian.

Even after Erdogan told protestors Thursday that he would postpone construction efforts, unrest persisted across Turkey, coming to a violent head at Taksim Square and nearby Gezi Park on Saturday after police attempted to evict protestors ahead of a pro-government rally.

Slideshow: Anger in Turkey

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Protests that started as an outcry against a local development project in Taksim Square have snowballed into widespread anger against what critics say is the government's increasingly conservative and authoritarian agenda.

Launch slideshow

Police stormed the park in a rapid military-style operation, unleashing a hail of tear gas and lobbing percussion bombs at demonstrators, sending them running in all directions, according to NBC’s Richard Engel and Emma Ong.

Officers fired stinging tear gas inside the nearby Divan Hotel, which protesters were using as a base. Some of the protesters inside fainted while others went limp as the lethal fumes wafted through the halls.

Armored police cars, fire trucks and sanitation vehicles were dispatched to clear away the tents, barricades and debris that were left in the park and the square over the course of a two-week sit-in.

The assault drew fierce condemnation from activists and aroused global attention.

Meanwhile on Sunday, tens of thousands of Erdogan's supporters massed at a rally in Istanbul — even as riot police fired tear gas to break up pockets of anti-government protesters in the city center some miles away.

"We are the silent majority, not the riff-raff who are trying to frighten us," Ruveyda Alkan, 32, said among the sea of Erdogan's AK Party faithful at an Istanbul parade ground

NBC News' Richard Engel and Emma Ong, and Reuters and the Associate Press contributed to this report.

Related:

• Turkey protesters refuse to leave Istanbul park despite PM pledge
• Turkey protesters say PM Erdogan vows to respect courts on park plans
• Photographer documents Istanbul 'war zone' in his own backyard on Facebook

This story was originally published on Sun Jun 16, 2013 10:47 PM EDT

Stringer/Mexico / Reuters

Mayoral candidate Morris the Cat is held by his owner at his home in Xalapa, capital of the state of Veracruz, Saturday.

MEXICO CITY - This mayoral hopeful in Mexico promises to eat, sleep most of the day and donate his leftover litter to fill potholes.

Morris, a black-and-white kitten with orange eyes, is running for mayor of Xalapa in eastern Mexico with the campaign slogan "Tired of Voting for Rats? Vote for a Cat." And he is attracting tens of thousands of politician-weary, two-legged supporters on social media.

"He sleeps almost all day and does nothing, and that fits the profile of a politician," said 35-year-old office worker Sergio Chamorro, who adopted the 10-month-old feline last year.

Put forth as a candidate by Chamorro and a group of friends after they became disillusioned with the empty promises of politicians, Morris' candidacy has resonated across Mexico, where citizens frustrated with human candidates are nominating their pets and farm animals to run in July 7 elections being held in 14 states.

Also running for mayor are "Chon the Donkey" in the border city of Ciudad Juarez, "Tina the Chicken" in Tepic, the capital of the Pacific coast state of Nayarit, "Maya the Cat" in the city of Puebla and "Tintan the Dog" in Oaxaca City, though their campaigns are not as well organized as that of Morris.

Politicians repeatedly rank at the bottom of polls about citizens' trust in institutions. A survey last year by Mitofsky polling agency ranking Mexicans' trust in 15 institutions put politicians and government officials among the bottom five. Universities and the Catholic Church were the top two, respectively.

Morris' cuteness, the clever campaign and promises to donate money collected from the sales of campaign stickers and T-shirts to an animal shelter has attracted cat lovers, but Chamorro said most of his supporters are citizens tired of corrupt politicians and fraudulent elections.

"Morris has been a catalyst to show the discontent that exists in our society," Chamorro said. "Our message from the beginning has been 'if none of the candidates represent you, vote for the cat' and it seems people are responding to that."

Stringer/Mexico / Reuters

Mayoral candidate Morris the Cat at home in Mexico.

Xalapa, a university city of 450,000 people, is the capital of the Gulf coast state of Veracruz, where residents have in last two years been beleaguered by drug violence, corruption scandals and the killings of at least nine reporters and photojournalists.

During last year's presidential election, a video posted on social networks showed a massive warehouse in Veracruz stuffed with election give-away groceries. Authorities also seized $1.9 million in wads of cash found when police decided to search passengers of a private plane arriving from Veracruz to Toluca, the capital of the home state of now-President Enrique Pena Nieto. Officials later said they had found no wrongdoing and the money was returned.

Giovanna Mazzotti, a 48-year-old university professor from the city of bright colonial buildings and steep streets, said she supports Morris' campaign and plans to go to a party for him being held Friday. The candidate is not expected to attend.

"In this state there is no rule of law, there is no respect for human rights, there are no institutions," Mazzotti said. "It's great that this campaign is showing the fiction in our elections. Every three years politicians laugh at us, it's good to laugh at them a bit, too."

Morris has a website, a Twitter account and a Facebook page with more than 115,000 'likes,' that makes him more popular in social networks than the five human mayoral contenders. Americo Zuniga, the candidate for the ruling party who is leading in election polls, had 33,000 Facebook 'likes' as of Friday.

His website has a collection of memes that picture Morris yawning while describing his "ample legislative experience," an image that mirrors photographs of lawmakers sleeping during congressional sessions.

Morris' campaign managers are asking supporters to write-in 'Morris' or draw a cat's face on the ballot to send a message to authorities, who are not taking the cat's growing popularity lightly.

Members of the Electoral Institute of Veracruz this week called on voters not to waste their vote on a cat.

"We are asking for people to participate by voting for those citizens registered on the ballots," electoral institute president Carolina Viveros told local media this week. "Everything else is part of expressions happening in social media and I respect that, but you have to vote for the registered candidates, please."

Morris also has international supporters.

On Friday, the animal-welfare group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals wrote Morris congratulating him for his campaign.

Stubbs, a cat that has been the honorary mayor for more than 15 years of the sleepy Alaska town of Talkeetna, has shown support for Morris by posting his fellow feline candidate's spot campaign on its Facebook page. 

This story was originally published on Sun Jun 16, 2013 9:12 AM EDT

ISTANBUL, Turkey - Police fired tear gas inside a hotel being used as a protest base late Saturday as authorities forcefully cleared Taksim Square ahead of a Sunday rally by the ruling AK Party.

Police moved into square – scene of days of often violent demonstrations - in a quick military-style operation that threatens to reignite anger at the government of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.

In a further sign of tension, Istanbul's governor said Sunday that a planned demonstration in Taksim Square would not be allowed to go ahead.

Deep divisions in this country are becoming even more distinct as the public disorder drags on.

Using water cannons and bulldozers, officers were able to clear both the square and Gezi Park, the leafy corner that protesters say will be destroyed by redevelopment plans.

Police got much more aggressive in the small streets around the square, and fired tear gas inside the Divan Hotel which protesters were using as a base.

Some of those inside the hotel fainted and others went limp. In an enclosed space, the gas is far more powerful and can even be lethal.

The tactic drew condemnation from activists, who posted pictures of the scenes inside the hotel on Twitter.

The Occupy Gezi group said police had also entered a nearby Hilton hotel to which some protesters had fled.

Earlier Saturday, Erdogan addressed a rally of thousands of supporters in the capital, Ankara.

"We have our Istanbul rally tomorrow. I say it clearly: Taksim Square must be evacuated, otherwise this country's security forces know how to evacuate it," he said, according to Al Jazeera.

Sunday's AK Party rally is being held away from Taksim Square to avoid clashes with protesters, but the square remains a potential flashpoint. 

Slideshow: Anger in Turkey

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Protests that started as an outcry against a local development project in Taksim Square have snowballed into widespread anger against what critics say is the government's increasingly conservative and authoritarian agenda.

Launch slideshow

Erdogan refers to the protesters as troublemakers and is vowing to restore order by clearing Taksim Square and other protest sites around Turkey.

But even some of his supporters say he may be overstepping and that by using so much force he is turning what began as a small protest into a major civil movement against his rule.

On Thursday, Erdogan told protesters at talks he would put on hold plans to build a replica Ottoman-era barracks in Gezi Park until a court rules on the issue, raising hopes of an end to the clashes.

NBC News' Alastair Jamieson contributed to this report.

Related stories:

• Turkey protesters say PM Erdogan vows to respect courts on park plans
• 'Lawbreakers' to be removed from Taksim Square, Turkey PM warns
• Photographer documents Istanbul 'war zone' in his own backyard on Facebook

This story was originally published on Sun Jun 16, 2013 8:39 AM EDT

Alfredo Estrella / AFP - Getty Images

Mexicans leave their homes after an earthquake in Mexico City early on Sunday.

MEXICO CITY - Power outages hit the Mexican capital of Mexico City in the early hours of Sunday after an earthquake struck the center of the country, and officials said there was no other damage reported.

Some restaurants and residential buildings in the capital were evacuated as a precautionary measure, they said.

Buildings shuddered in the city, a Reuters witness said.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) downgraded its initial measurement of the quake to magnitude 5.8 from 6.0.

No one at state oil company Pemex was immediately available to comment but the group has no major installations near the epicenter of the quake, 14 miles west of Jolalpan in southwest Mexico, 76 miles south of Mexico City. 

This story was originally published on Sun Jun 16, 2013 5:57 AM EDT

The United States and its allies have concluded that the government of Bashar Assad has used chemical weapons in Syria's protracted civil war, leading President Barack Obama to broaden aid — including military support — to opposition groups.

The intelligence community concluded with "high confidence" that the Assad regime had used chemical weapons — including the nerve agent sarin — "on a small scale against the opposition multiple times in the last year."

"The intelligence community estimates that 100 to 150 people have died from detected chemical weapons attacks in Syria to date; however, casualty data is likely incomplete," said Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes.

The use of chemical weapons crosses the so-called "red line" first established by Obama last year, which he said would prompt the administration to alter its posture. The administration said on Thursday that Obama had decided to broaden support to the Supreme Military Council, a principal opposition group in Syria, and Rhodes said that assistance "will include military support."

Rhodes declined to specify what kind of military support the United States would provide to the SMC, but noted that Obama had not decided to establish a no-fly zone, as some Republicans have demanded.

Rhodes cited the "great and open-ended cost" associated with establishing a partial or complete no-fly zone over Syria, seeming to suggest that the prospect of such action, for now, was unlikely.

He added: "We're looking at a wide range of types of support we can provide both to the political opposition and to the SMC on the ground. I'm not going to be able to detail every single type of support that we are providing, but it's suffice to say it's important to note that it is both the political and the military opposition that will be -- that is and will be receiving U.S. assistance."  

Slideshow: Syria uprising

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A look back at the conflict that has overtaken the country.

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Reuters reported that Obama administration officials have said that any arming of the rebels would likely be limited to small arms and ammunition rather than anti-aircraft weapons.

Obama first laid out his "red line" in August.

"We have been very clear to the Assad regime, but also to other players on the ground, that a red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized," Obama told reporters at that time. "That would change my calculus. That would change my equation."

The president noted earlier this year that there had been preliminary indications of the use of chemical weapons in Syria. But he resisted taking action until he said the intelligence community could conclude with certainty that such weapons had actually been used by Assad.

To that end, Rhodes said that the United States and its allies had begun acting in April to assist the SMC by providing increased support in response to Assad crossing a "red line."

But Rhodes also noted that the United States had prepared for "multiple contingencies" — military, diplomatic, or economic — to help put pressure on the Assad government.

"We're going to make decisions about further actions on our own timeline," he said, later adding: "We're looking at a wide range of types of support we could provide."

The topic of Syria is sure to loom large next week as the leaders of the world's largest economies gather for the G8 conference in Ireland.

The Obama administration had come under pressure from hawkish Republicans in Congress to take a more active role in ousting the Assad regime, either by directly arming rebels, or by enforcing a partial or complete no-fly zone in Syria.

“I applaud the president’s decision and I appreciate it," Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., one such hawk, said Thursday on the Senate floor.

"But the president of the United States had better understand that just supplying weapons is not going to change the equation on the ground [or] the balance of power. These people – the Free Syrian Army – need weapons, heavy weapons to counter tanks and aircraft, they need a no-fly zone, and Bashar Assad’s air assets have to be taken out and neutralized. We can do that without risking a single American airplane."

Said Brendan Buck, a spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio: "It is long past time to bring the Assad regime's bloodshed in Syria to an end. As President Obama examines his options, it is our hope he will properly consult with Congress before taking any action."

It’s not just Republicans who have directly or indirectly put pressure on the president for more action.  Former President Bill Clinton reportedly told McCain in a closed-press event Wednesday that he agreed with the Arizona senator about the need for Obama to act more forcefully to support Syrian rebels, saying Americans expect their presidents to be able to “see down the road” and set aside public opinion.

Slideshow: The lives of Syrian rebels

NBC News

People resisting the army of President Bashar al-Assad in northern Syria cope with loss and prepare for fighting.

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But there are delicate considerations involved in the administration's decision to become more involved. Namely, the U.S. is worried about navigating a thorny relationship with Russia, which has been resistant to apply much pressure to the Assad regime.

Some U.S. officials have also expressed concern that arms supplied to rebels could fall into the hands of fighters who could eventually pivot to use those very arms against U.S. interests or allies.

And then there is the issue of scarce political appetite among most Americans for increased military involvement in Syria following more than a decade of war in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Just 15 percent of Americans said in June's NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll that they favor U.S. military action in Syria; only 11 percent want to provide arms to the opposition. A plurality of respondents -- 42 percent -- prefer to provide only humanitarian assistance, and 24 percent believe the U.S. shouldn't take any action.

NBC's Mark Murray and Carrie Dann and Reuters contributed to this report.

Related:

• 'Long overdue': Reactions to White House announcement on Syria
• Kids wage war in Syria, UN report says
• Analysis: A battle may be won, but war will rage on for Syria's Assad

This story was originally published on Thu Jun 13, 2013 5:17 PM EDT

Thanassis Stavrakis / AP

A worker cleans the steps of Istanbul's Taksim Square on Thursday.

Editor's note: This story includes a correction.

ANKARA, Turkey -- "Lawbreakers" will be removed from Istanbul's Taksim Square, Turkey's prime minister declared Thursday.

Ratcheting up his defiant tone, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan appeared determined to end two weeks of protests that have put an unflattering international spotlight on his Islamic-rooted government and its handling of the biggest street unrest of his 10-year tenure.

Erdogan's comments came a day after his Justice and Development party proposed a referendum over a development plan at Taksim Square that has fanned the protests. Police have repeatedly fired water cannons, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the protesters; five people have died and over 5,000 have been injured. The government says 600 police were injured as well.

"This square belongs to the people of Istanbul, the people of the whole country, and to all international visitors. So we cannot allow lawbreakers to hang around freely in this square," Erdogan told local party leaders. "We will clean the square."

Erdogan also lashed out at the European Parliament over its non-binding motion for a resolution that expressed its concern over "the disproportionate and excessive use of force" by Turkish police.

The EU assembly said it "deplores the reactions of the Turkish Government and of Prime Minister Erdogan" — and accused him of adding to the polarization of the situation.

Just minutes before the EU legislature approved the motion in a show of hands, Erdogan thundered to raucous applause: "I won't recognize the decision that the European Union Parliament is going to take about us ... Who do you think you are by taking such a decision?"

The protests erupted May 31 after a violent police crackdown on a peaceful sit-in by activists objecting to a development project that would cut down the trees in Gezi Park, adjacent to Taksim Square, with a replica of Ottoman-era barracks.

Slideshow: Anger in Turkey

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Protests that started as an outcry against a local development project in Taksim Square have snowballed into widespread anger against what critics say is the government's increasingly conservative and authoritarian agenda.

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The demonstrations then spread to dozens of cities, rallying tens of thousands of people each night, and broadened to a protest over Erdogan's overall rule.

Protesters have been objecting to what they say is the prime minister's increasingly authoritarian style and his perceived attempts to impose a religious and conservative lifestyle on a country with secular laws — charges he rejects.

Protesters who have camped out in a peaceful sit-in in Gezi Park remained on site Thursday. Their continued presence by the hundreds has served as a base for large numbers of protesters who have congregated by the thousands on Taksim Square — usually in the evening, after work.

Also Thursday, 26-year-old Ethem Sarisuluk — who had been on life support for days — was pronounced dead, according to family lawyer Sema Aksoy. He was believed to have been hit in the head by a tear gas canister June 1 during protests in Ankara, though lawyers were going to sit in on the autopsy to verity the exact circumstances leading to his death.

Related:

• Uneasy calm after protesters flee Taksim Square
• Turkey crackdown is 'last straw' for Erdogan opponents
• Photographer documents Istanbul 'war zone' on Facebook

This story was originally published on Thu Jun 13, 2013 6:46 AM EDT

Djilali Belaid / AFP-Getty Images, file

An image grab shows a Syrian boy holding an assault rifle as he is comforted by a rebel during fighting with government forces near the village of Azzara on June 28, 2012.

UNITED NATIONS - Syrian troops and rebels are recruiting children to fight in the country's civil war and some have been tortured by government forces for having links to the opposition, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon said in a report on Wednesday.

The report issued after Ban's special envoy for children and armed conflict, Leila Zerrougui, visited Syria in December said thousands of children have been killed in the violence, "while thousands more have seen family members killed or injured."

The report also said children are recruited, killed, maimed or raped by government forces and armed groups in Afghanistan, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan and Yemen, as well as by armed groups in Mali, Colombia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Iraq and the Central African Republic.

The United Nations considers anyone aged under 18 to be a child.

Ban said that in Syria, torture and ill-treatment of children accused of associating with opposition forces was a worrying trend.

"There were a number of accounts of sexual violence against boys to obtain information or a confession by the state forces, largely but not exclusively by members of the state intelligence services and the Syrian armed forces," the report said.

"Child detainees, largely boys and as young as 14 years old, suffered similar or identical methods of tortures as adults, including electric shock, beatings, stress positions and threats and acts of sexual torture," it said.

Armed opposition groups, including the Free Syrian Army, were also accused of using children, generally aged 15 to 17 years old, both in combat and in support roles, such as ferrying food and water and loading cartridges, the report said.

"From accounts received, child association with the Free Syrian Army is often linked to an older relative facilitating recruitment or in instances in which the child has lost all members of his or her family," it said.

Ban said that the Syrian government and the National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces had assured Zerrougui that they were committed to working with the United Nations to stop the abuse of children's rights.

The report said that in Chad, while progress had been made and the army had a policy of not recruiting children, there were 34 verified cases child recruitment by the army in 2012.

"All 34 children appeared to have been enlisted in the context of a recruitment drive between February and March 2012, during which the army gained 8,000 new recruits," it said.

Chadian troops played a key role in helping French forces during a military offensive in January to drive out Islamist fighters who seized two-thirds of Mali.

Diplomats have said Chad is working with the United Nations to stamp out child soldier recruitment so the country can potentially be part of a peacekeeping force in Mali, which is set to assume authority next month.

The report said there had been a spike in grave violations against children by both government troops and armed groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo, amid a year-long insurgency by M23 rebels. U.N. experts accused Rwanda supporting M23 last year, but Rwanda denies the accusation.

Slideshow: The lives of Syrian rebels

NBC News

People resisting the army of President Bashar al-Assad in northern Syria cope with loss and prepare for fighting.

Launch slideshow

Related:

• Full Syria coverage from NBC News

This story was originally published on Thu Jun 13, 2013 5:01 AM EDT