The U.N. and Arab League’s chief peace envoy to Syria, Kofi Annan, called on Security Council members Friday to end their stalemate and decide what to do to pressure Syria into ending its deadly crackdown on dissent. In a briefing from Geneva, the former U.N. secretary-general said he is sending a team to Damascus next week to discuss a plan to deploy international monitors. Diplomats say Annan discussed his plans in a video briefing to the Council on Friday, less than a week after his own meetings in Damascus with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. After the briefing, Annan told reporters Syria’s political turmoil needs to be handled carefully to avoid any “miscalculations” that could lead to a “major escalation” that could impact the entire region. “I think it is a conflict in a region of the world that has seen many, many traumatic events,” he said. “I think we need to handle the situation in Syria very, very carefully.” Asked if the government and opposition would agree to speak with each other, Annan said the activists he met, although angry and frustrated over the government crackdown, are eager to get talks going and resolve the issue politically and peacefully. Western diplomats say they hope Annan’s mediation will accelerate efforts to pass a U.N. resolution condemning Assad’s bloody crackdown on dissent. Russia and China have twice vetoed previous resolutions condemning Syria. U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Syria: Syrian state media released a statement on Friday ahead of the closed Security Council meeting, saying the Damascus government has pledged its cooperation with Annan in the hope of finding a “political solution” to the crisis. The Foreign Ministry statement again blamed unspecified “terrorists” and foreign interference for much of the deadly violence in Syria. Annan met with Assad last Saturday and Sunday. He outlined proposals to end the fighting, provide humanitarian aid and begin political dialogue. Rebel fighters have been in retreat throughout Syria and a movement of opposition activists has been fragmented with dissent. But Western governments have been reluctant to arm the Syrian opposition, for fear of further inflaming the situation. Thousands of opposition protesters took to the streets in over a dozen towns and cities across the country Friday to demonstrate against the Syrian government. The rallies took place despite a government military offensive in many areas, and a siege by government forces in others. Internet video showed crowds of protesters in several flashpoint districts. Opposition activists waved signs calling for “immediate foreign intervention.” The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebel soldiers clashed with government forces overnight in towns near Damascus. VOA cannot confirm events shown in the videos since most foreign correspondents are not being allowed into Syria. Syrian state media announced that Iran is sending several planeloads of humanitarian aid to the Syrian Red Crescent Society. U.S. officials say Iraq is allowing Iran to fly military supplies to Syria over its airspace. Iran sends aid Middle East scholar Fouad Ajami, of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University in California, says few details about Iran’s aid to Syria are available. He says Assad has sought assistance from Iran and its ally, the Hezbollah faction in Lebanon. “I think he’s getting good aid from Iran and from Hezbollah, because Iran and Hezbollah are committed to this fight,” Ajami said. “The Iranians are helping him with software, and with knowledge they can shop [send] abroad, which is the knowledge they acquired in the summer of 2009, destroying the[ir] Green Movement.” Turkey wants buffer With thousands of Syrians fleeing into Turkey to escape the violence, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan indicates Turkey is considering intervening inside Syria to protect those refugees. Erdogan said a buffer or security zone is being looked at, but other ideas are also under consideration. One of his senior ministers said late Thursday that a buffer zone offering protection to civilians fleeing the violence could extend as far as 10 kilometers into Syria. During the past few days alone, thousands of Syrians have streamed in to Turkey. New camps to house more than 20,000 people are under construction, but the head of the Turkish Red Crescent estimates that up to 500,000 Syrians could eventually seek sanctuary in Turkey. Ankara, once a close ally of Damascus, is now taking a leading role in diplomatic intervention in the Syrian crisis.   Loading… —— Edward Yeranian in Cairo, Dorian Jones in Istanbul and wire services contributed to this report. Join the conversation on our social journalism site – Middle East Voices . Follow our Middle East reports on Twitter and discuss them on our Facebook page.

Continue reading " Annan Asks for UN Action on Syria "

Renewed efforts to end the violence in Syria are being overshadowed by more demonstrations and deaths. Syrian opposition groups say at least 19 people died Friday as thousands took to the streets across the country to rally against the government of President Bashar al-Assad. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said most of the deaths occurred in the Homs, the city that has been a focus of the government’s crackdown against protest. The renewed bloodshed comes as former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, representing the U.N. and the Arab League, prepared to visit Syria Saturday to try to find a political solution to the crisis. Annan has warned against arming rebel forces, saying foreign intervention would make the situation worse. Opposition groups contend a political solution is unrealistic as long as President Assad is intent on using military force against his opponents. Chinese support Despite the continued bloodshed, China is voicing support for Annan’s mission, saying it hopes that “impartial mediation” can result in peace talks. China, along with Russia, has twice vetoed U.N. Security Council proposals that would have put pressure on Assad’s government to end the conflict. However, some foreign diplomats say the end of the Assad government may be in sight. Germany Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Friday that “the collapse of the Assad regime has started and will continue — no country can be led with atrocity and oppression.” Humanitarian Visit U.N. humanitarian chief Valerie Amos toured Syrian refugee camps along the Turkish-Syrian border on Friday before holding talks with officials in Ankara. At least 11,000 Syrians have sought refuge at the camps as government forces target rebellious areas along the border. The U.N. estimates that Syrian forces have killed well over 7,500 people since the anti-Assad uprising began a year ago. The government blames “terrorists” for the unrest, saying that 2,000 of its security forces have been killed in the conflict. Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters. Join the conversation on our social journalism site – Middle East Voices . Follow our Middle East reports on Twitter and discuss them on our Facebook page.

Continue reading " Bloodshed Precedes UN Envoy’s Syria Visit "

The U.N. Secretary-General warned Friday that Syria risks a descent into full civil war and sectarian strife that could plague the country for generations to come.  Ban Ki-moon told the U.N. General Assembly that the international community must act in a unified and urgent manner to end the past year’s bloodshed and suffering. Two weeks ago the 193-member General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted a resolution condemning the widespread human rights abuses in Syria and calling for an immediate end to the violence. In its resolution, the General Assembly required the U.N. chief to report to them within 15 days on whether their demands had been implemented. The continuing violence in Syria clearly shows they have not, and the Secretary-General reported that the United Nations continues to receive “grisly reports of summary executions, arbitrary detentions and torture.” Ban referred to reports of brutal fighting in the towns of Homs and Hama and said the humanitarian situation has degraded to the point that people are melting snow for drinking water. “This atrocious assault is all the more appalling for having been waged by the government itself, systematically attacking its own people. All agree we must act in the face of this escalating crisis,” Ban said. Ban said the Syrian government has failed to deliver on its responsibility to protect its citizens and as a result the death toll has exceeded 7,500 people. He called on the international community to do everything within its power to end the crisis. “We must help move towards a Syrian-led political transition to a democratic, pluralistic political system, as supported by this Assembly.  Yet to date, the international community has failed in its duty. In fact, the actions – indeed, the inaction – of the international community seems to have encouraged the Syrian authorities in their brutal suppression of its citizens,” Ban said. Ban urged an immediate end to the violence and killings and said his humanitarian chief and international aid workers must be allowed in. On Friday, the International Committee of the Red Cross said they had reached the besieged town of Homs, but were not allowed to enter the hard hit Baba Amr district with relief supplies. Syria’s U.N. Ambassador Bashar Ja’afari said he respects the U.N. chief very much, but that he was not well informed.  He called Ban’s remarks “aggressive,” “virulent” and “slandering” and warned his report would increase tensions, not defuse them. The envoy said he was not claiming that there are no problems or opposition in Syria, but blamed countries hostile to his government, as well as the foreign media, for targeting Syria. He said most of the country is living “normally” and blamed international sanctions for impeding access to food, fuel, medical supplies and cash. The new U.N.-Arab League Joint Special Envoy for Syria, Kofi Annan, is headed to Cairo and the wider region next week in an effort to mediate a political solution to the nearly year-long crisis. Join the conversation on our social journalism site – Middle East Voices . Follow our Middle East reports on Twitter and discuss them on our Facebook page.

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