The McClatchy News Service reports that “President Barack Obama on Thursday asked Congress for the first lethal aid to arm moderate Syrian rebels in a move aimed against both Syrian President Bashar Assad and radical Islamists who have increasingly dominated the opposition movement.”  

“Obama has urged helping moderate Syrian rebels for months, but his request for $500 million is the first time he’s put a dollar tag on the proposed aid. And it was the first time he specified that the money should be used, in part, to arm and train the rebels.”