UN adds al-Nusra in Syria to sanctions blacklist

       
The U.N. Security Council has agreed to add the al-Nusra Front, the al-Qaeda linked opposition force fighting in Syria, to the U.N. sanctions blacklist.          

The U.S. Mission to the United Nations said none of the 15 council members objected to adding al-Nusra as an alias of al-Qaeda in Iraq by the deadline Thursday.         

The mission said the decision by the Security Council committee monitoring sanctions against al-Qaeda will be officially published on Friday, subjecting al-Nusra to a global arms embargo and asset freeze.        

Meanwhile, Russia said that it supports a request from the Syrian government to send experts to investigate alleged use of chemical weapons by rebels near Aleppo.         

The alleged incident took place on March 19 in Khan al-Assal village in Aleppo.           

The Syrian government asked the United Nations to investigate the alleged attack, but insisted that a probe be limited to that incident.           

For his part, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is insisting on a broader investigation, including a December incident in Homs raised by Britain and France that allegedly involved use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government.           

On the field:          

Violence continued across various rebel-held parts of Syria, activists said on Friday, as a Russian arms manufacturer announced it plans to sign a new agreement with the Syrian regime to ship at least 10 fighter jets to Syria.        

Anti-regime activists uploaded to the internet video they said showed the heavy bombing of the town of Talbiseh in central Homs province. 

More videos from the region showed destroyed buildings, which activists said was the result of sustained shelling.