Syrian security forces battled for a second day on Friday to crush a nascent insurgency by fighters from Bashar al-Assad's Alawite sect, with scores reported killed as the Islamist-led government faced the biggest challenge yet to its authority.

With Israel and Hamas on the cusp of a ceasefire in Gaza, our reporters investigated the strategy of the United Arab Emirates in the region. The oil and gas-rich Gulf monarchy – a Middle Eastern heavyweight which has a strong rivalry with neighbouring Qatar – is spreading its influence and preparing for the period after the war, when the bombs will finally fall silent in the Gaza Strip and focus will turn to reconstruction.