ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

The two countries agree to hold an international conference to push both sides in Syria to find an end to the bloodshed. The United States and Russia have agreed to push both sides in Syria to find an end to the bloodshed, offering to hold an international conference in search of peace. In talks which stretched late into the night, US Secretary of State John Kerry met first for more than two hours with President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday and then for a further three with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. "We agreed that Russia and the United States will encourage both the Syria government and opposition groups to find a political solution," Lavrov told reporters at a concluding news conference that ended after midnight. Hopefully by the end of May the two ministers working together could convene an international conference to build on the Geneva accord agreed by world powers last June for a peaceful solution in Syria, they said. Al Jazeera's James Bays, reporting from the

Suspected members of the Nigerian Islamist sect Boko Haram have raided the north-eastern town of Bama, leaving 55 people dead. Boko Haram gunmen killed 22 police officers, 14 prison officials, two soldiers and four civilians, while 13 of the group's own members died, military spokesman Sagir Musa said. Gunmen freed 105 prison members during the raid, which began about 5:00am (local time) and lasted almost five hours, Mr Musa said. Witnesses said Bama's police station, military barracks and government buildings were burned to the ground. Bama is a small, remote town in north-eastern Borno state, where Boko Haram first launched an uprising in 2009. The Boko Haram sect and offshoots such as the Al Qaeda-linked Ansaru, as well as associated criminal networks, pose the main threat to stability in Africa's top energy producer. Western governments are increasingly concerned about Nigerian militants linking up with other jihadist groups in the West African region. Boko Haram wants