SYRIA: Nour al-Din al-Labbad, former Syrian ambassador and renowned poet, was assassinated on March 11, 2025, in his hometown of al-Sanamayn, Daraa. A prominent defector from Assad’s regime, al-Labbad returned from exile just weeks before his death. His killing, amid growing violence in post-Assad Syria, highlights the peril faced by opposition figures and the fragile security situation during the country’s ongoing transition