The US military’s European command(s) says its personnel and equipment have begun to arrive at the Incirlik airbase in southern Turkey. That’s a facility run by both Turkey and the United States. Germany and the Netherlands have also agreed to send two batteries of their own. Nato says the patriot missiles will be deployed to protect Turkey’s airspace. The organization insists that the deployment is purely defensive and is not a prelude to creating a no-fly zone over Syria.
Supporters of the Palestinian group Fata have celebrated its 48th anniversary with a rally in the Gaza Strip, the first since the rival Islamist Movement Hamas took power there in 2007. President Mahmud Abbas addressed tens of thousands of followers via a video link from the Fata power base in the west bank town of Ramallah. He said reconciliation between the two factions was essential if a fully-independent Palestinian state was to be realized. 'We should work together in unity. There’s no better way to reach our national goals and achieve victory. Our regards to our brave prisoners, to our people inside the country and the diaspora.' The event was cut short amid jostling in the crowd. Organizers put it down to overcrowding, but some witnesses blamed supporters of rival Fata leaders.
Journalists who worked for a liberal newspaper in China have demanded the resignation of a propaganda chief in a rare confrontation with the ruling Communist Party. In open letters, former employees and interns of the paper the Southern Weekly accused the official of dictatorial actions in an era of growing openness.