Middle East
Syria urged to end deadly repression
Obama leads condemnation and accuses Damascus of seeking Iranian help as dozens
reported killed in latest protests.
Last Modified: 23 Apr 2011 08:28
Barack Obama, the US president, has said Syria's deadly crackdown on protesters
"must come to an end now" and accused Damascus of seeking Iranian help to
repress its people.
Some 75 protesters were killed on Friday, according to human rights group
Amnesty International, in the bloodiest violence in a month of escalating
protests against Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's rule.
Local activists have released a list of 103 people who they say were killed in
Friday's crackdown. SANA, the official news agency, put the number of people
killed on Friday at 10, reporting that they died in clashes between protesters
and passers-by. The SANA account said that security forces only used tear gas
and water cannons.
"This outrageous use of violence to quell protests must come to an end now,"
said Obama on Friday, dismissing as "not serious" Assad's lifting of a
decades-old emergency law in Syria this week and accused him of seeking help
from Iran.
"Instead of listening to their own people, President Assad is blaming outsiders
while seeking Iranian assistance in repressing Syria's citizens through the
same brutal tactics that have been used by his Iranian allies," he said.
"We strongly oppose the Syrian government's treatment of its citizens and we
continue to oppose its continued destabilising behaviour more generally,
including support for terrorism and terrorist groups," said Obama.
Despite the criticism, Obama did not refer to any potential US consequences
should Assad refuse to heed his demands.
UN demands 'independent' investigation
Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, meanwhile, has condemned the Syrian
government's killing of demonstrators, calling for an "independent, transparent
and effective investigation into the killings", his spokesman said on Friday.
"The secretary-general condemns the ongoing violence against peaceful
demonstrators in Syria, which again has killed and injured many today, and
calls for it to stop immediately," Farhan Haq, Ban's spokesman, said from the
UN headquarters in New York.
Ban said that President Assad's government must "respect international human
rights, including the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, as
well as the freedom of the press".
The UN secretary-general stressed that "only an inclusive dialogue and the
effective implementation of reforms can address the legitimate aspirations of
the Syrian people and ensure social peace and order".
European condemnation
Jerzy Buzek, the European Parliament chief on Friday also condemned the
shooting deaths of protesters in Syria and called for the release of all
prisoners of conscience.
"Today's violent crackdown on peaceful demonstrations all over Syria is
unacceptable. The bloodshed has to stop now: this is the government's first and
foremost responsibility," he said in a statement.
"Any form of violence against peaceful demonstrators must stop: no more
killing, no more torture, no more arbitrary arrests. An independent
investigation into the deaths of protesters has to be carried out."
France also urged Syrian authorities to halt their use of violence on
anti-government protesters.
"We call on them once more to engage in an inclusive political dialogue without
delay and to put into place reforms that respond to the legitimate aspirations
of the Syrian people," said deputy spokeswoman Christine Fages, deputy
spokeswoman for the foreign ministry.
She also called for the release of those arrested and for respecting basic
rights, including media freedom and the right to hold peaceful demonstrations.
Peak of violence
At least 75 people were killed on Friday as security forces use live ammunition
and tear gas to quell anti-government protests across the country, according to
human rights group Amnesty International.
Friday's death toll was one of the bloodiest in protests for democratic change
- the first since emergency rule was imposed by the ruling Baath Party when it
seized power in 1963.
Amnesty International called for an immediate end to the attacks on protesters
and for an investigation into the deadly events.
"The Syrian authorities have again responded to peaceful calls for change with
bullets and batons," said Malcolm Smart, the London-based organisation's
director for the Middle East.
"They must immediately halt their attacks on peaceful protesters and instead
allow Syrians to gather freely, as international law demands."
Source:
Agencies
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