Dubai: An Arab League committee on Thursday gave Syria another 24 hours to agree to allow an observer mission into the country or face sanctions.
Members of the 22-member League urged Damascus to agree to an observer mission by today. If the beleaguered Bashar Al Assad regime fails to comply, the League will meet tomorrow to decide on sanctions that could include stopping flights to Syria, ending financial dealings with Damascus and freezing Syrian assets.
Meanwhile, clashes claimed 17 more lives in Syria, including 11 members of security forces and two deserters in the flashpoint province of Homs.
The city of Rastan, also in Homs, was blasted with heavy machinegun fire after clashes between soldiers and deserters, two of whom were killed and 13 wounded.
The European Union said yesterday that protecting civilians caught up in the crackdown "is an increasingly urgent and important aspect" of responding to the bloodshed. "Protection of civilians in Syria is an increasingly urgent and important aspect of responding to the events in the country," Maja Kocijancic, an EU spokeswoman, said.
France said it will seek Arab support for a humanitarian corridor in Syria, the first time a major power pushed for international intervention in the eight-month uprising against Al Assad.
Foreign Minister Alain Juppe floated the proposal for humanitarian intervention. Juppe said international monitors should be sent to protect civilians, with or without Al Assad's permission.
