Wednesday,  May 29, 2013 • Vol. 14--No. 313 • 23 of 30

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Syria's main opposition bloc urges EU to quickly send arms to rebels, help defeat Assad regime

• BEIRUT (AP) -- Syria's main opposition bloc has urged the European Union to quickly supply rebels fighting President Bashar Assad's forces with sophisticated weapons to help them overthrow his regime.
• The call by the Syrian National Coalition followed the EU's decision to let its arms embargo against Syrian expire, paving way for individual countries in the 27-member bloc to send weapons to Assad's outgunned opponents. However, the EU's move on Monday may have little impact on Syria's 2-year-old conflict, since no single European country is expected to send lethal weapons to the rebels anytime soon.
• In a statement late Tuesday, the Western-backed Syrian opposition coalition urged the EU to promptly send "specialized weaponry to repel the fierce attacks waged against unarmed civilians" by the Assad regime, its allies in Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group and their Iranian backers.
• "The Coalition recognizes that this decision is part of many serious efforts by the EU to support the Syrian people throughout the hardships in the uprisings," the opposition group said. "However, despite the importance of this decision, the words must be solidified by action."
• There are deep divisions in the EU over ways to end the bloodshed in Syria, and even Britain and France -- who want to arm the rebels -- have said they have no immediate plans to send weapons until diplomacy has been given a chance. The U.S. and Russia are trying to launch Syrian peace talks at a conference in Geneva, possibly next month.
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Officials: Fire under control at chemical-carrying train that derailed outside Baltimore

• ROSEDALE, Md. (AP) -- Officials say the fire at a derailed chemical-carrying CSX train outside Baltimore is under control.
• Capt. Bruce Schultz of the Baltimore County Office of the Fire Marshal's investigative services announced early Wednesday that the blaze in Rosedale, Md., a suburb east of Baltimore, was called under control late Tuesday just before midnight.
• Schultz says CSX has moved unaffected cars away from the derailed cars and

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