Cracking down

Members of the UN Security Council relaunched a dormant draft of a UN resolution on Monday to condemn the Syrian government for its brutal crackdown on protesters.

In an emergency UN Security Council meeting, Britain, France, Germany and Portugal demanded a revival of the formal resolution condemning the violence which is thought to have killed more than 1,600 people so far.

Germany called the closed meeting after human rights groups claimed that more than 80 protesters were killed on Sunday when Syrian troops stormed the flashpoint city of Hama.

A further 24 civilians across the country were killed on Monday, the first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

As the UN prepares for a second day of talks on Tuesday, the European Union took more decisive action.

It added Syrian Defence Minister Ali Habib and four other security officials to a blacklist of individuals and businesses associated with the repression of the anti-government movement.

To date, the EU has imposed an asset freeze and visa ban on some 30 businesses and individuals linked to the regime including Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

UN deliberates

The new measures come amid international calls for the UN Security Council to formally condemn Syria after months of contention over the right course of action.

"We call on those members of the United Nations Security Council who have opposed any Security Council action that would call on Syrian President Assad to stop the killing to reconsider their positions," US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a statement.

Although the 15-nation body failed to reach an agreement on Monday over whether to adopt the Western-backed draft resolution or negotiate a less binding statement, diplomats said that there was wider acceptance that the Security Council must take action.

"I detected a certain convergence of thinking, concern about the escalating violence," Indian Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri, this month's council president, told reporters.

"The members of the council all felt that the council should address itself to the situation and pronounce itself if the need be," he added.

Ongoing opposition

But action has been stalled by several influential of the Council who remain uncertain about issuing a formal resolution.

In the wake of the meeting, Russian Ambassador, Vitaly Churkin said that issuing a resolution was "somewhat excessive" and that a formal statement by the council president, calling for an end to violence but urging a peaceful political solution, would be "satisfactory."

Western European countries first circulated the draft resolution two months ago but Russia and China, two of the five permanent council members with veto powers, threatened to block it.

Temporary council members Brazil, India, Lebanon and South Africa also said they did not support either a resolution or a statement.

Critics fear that even a simple condemnation could be the first step toward Western military intervention in Syria, as happened in Libya in March.

At least 3,000 people are believed to have gone missing and 12,000 to have been taken prisoner since the protests against the 11-year rule of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad erupted in March.

Syrian authorities have expelled most independent journalists, making it difficult to verify the death toll and reports of the fighting.

Author: Charlotte Chelsom-Pill (Reuters, AFP)
Editor: Andreas Illmer