First Syria rebels armed and trained by CIA 'on way to battlefield'

The first [official] cell of Syrian rebels trained and armed by the CIA is making its way to the battlefield, President Barack Obama has reportedly told senators.

During a meeting at the White House, the president assured Senator John McCain that after months of delay the US was meeting its commitment to back moderate elements of the opposition.

Mr Obama said that a 50-man cell, believed to have been trained by US special forces in Jordan, was making its way across the border into Syria, according to the New York Times.

The deployment of the rebel unit seems to be the first tangible measure of support since Mr Obama announced in June that the US would begin providing the opposition with small arms.

Congressional opposition delayed the plan for several weeks and rebel commanders publicly complained the US was still doing nothing to match the Russian-made firepower of the Assad regime. Read more >>

US-Backed Saudis Step Up Help for Rebels in Syria With Croatian Arms

Saudi Arabia has financed a large purchase of infantry weapons from Croatia and quietly funneled them to antigovernment fighters in Syria in a drive to break the bloody stalemate that has allowed President Bashar al-Assad to cling to power, according to American and Western officials familiar with the purchases.

The weapons began reaching rebels in December via shipments shuttled through Jordan, officials said, and have been a factor in the rebels’ small tactical gains this winter against the army and militias loyal to Mr. Assad.

The arms transfers appeared to signal a shift among several governments to a more activist approach to assisting Syria’s armed opposition, in part as an effort to counter shipments of weapons from Iran to Mr. Assad’s forces. The weapons’ distribution has been principally to armed groups viewed as nationalist and secular, and appears to have been intended to bypass the jihadist groups whose roles in the war have alarmed Western and regional powers. Read more >>

Two Brothers Patent Toilet Paper Ads

Jordan and Bryan Silverman are offering businesses the chance to advertise on a slightly unusual platform — toilet paper. "It's an unmatched active audience," Jordan, co-founder of Star Toilet Paper, told the Daily News. "A person looks at the average advertisement for two to five seconds. People will look at ours for a lot longer."

The environmentally friendly paper, printed with coupons and ads in soy-bean-based ink, sells for half a cent per ad. Users can redeem the coupons through Star Toilet Paper's website. Venues that want to put in the ad-filled paper in their stalls get the rolls for free. Jordan, a recent graduate of University of Michigan, came up with the innovative marketing plan about two years ago when he found himself taking a minute to look at the wall of a bathroom stall at the Ann Arbor, Mich., campus.

"I was thinking that it's one of the times that people want to read," Jordan, who quickly turned to his brother with the plan, said. "We've really felt that we were on to something." Since then, Jordan, 22, and Bryan, 18, have found that the idea is flush with opportunities. Read more >>