International pressure on Syrian Leader Assad to end violence

As the Syrian government intensifies its crackdown against pro-democracy protesters, the international community steps up its pressure on president Bashar al-Assad ( Photo on Left ) to stop the bloodletting.

In a session on Tuesday, members of the UN Security Council discussed the uptick in violence, but failed to issue a collective statement.

Still, Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, condemned the violence against "peaceful protesters" and called on the Syrian government to respect the people's rights to freedom of expression. "I condemn, utterly, the continuing violence against peaceful demonstrators, most particularly the use of tanks and live fire that have killed and injured hundreds of people," Ban said.

"It goes without saying that Syrian authorities have an obligation to protect civilians and respect international human rights. That includes the right to free expression and peaceful assembly."

Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the United Nations, has also criticised the Syrian government for what she called the "abhorrent use of violence to quell protests."

"Anti Democratic Assad is disingenuously blaming outsiders—at the same time seeking Iranian assistance to repress citizens," she said.