Obama, allies demand resignation of Syria's Assad

Beginning of Story Content U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday issued his first direct call for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down. Obama said Assad must go "for the sake of the Syrian people." Prime Minister Stephen Harper echoed Obama's demand that the Syrian leader must leave power immediately. European leaders also issued similar calls. "The Assad regime has lost all legitimacy by killing its own people to stay in power," Harper said in a written statement. Obama said he has signed an executive order freezing all Syrian assets in the U.S. The order also banned the U.S. import of petroleum and petroleum products of Syrian origin. International <a href="http://www.trading666.com/T-shirt-polo-men-t-shirt-f2-61-c3-89.html"><strong>buy cheap polo t-shirt online </strong></a> pressure against Assad is mounting after his continued attempts to violently crush a six-month uprising. Nearly 2,000 people are believed to have been killed in the crackdown, while tens of thousands have been arrested. "It is clear that President Assad believes that he can silence the voices of <a href="http://www.trading666.com/others-brand-cigarettes-f2-66.html"><strong>wholesale marlboro red cigarettes from china </strong></a> his people by resorting to the repressive tactics of the past," Obama said. "But he is wrong. As we have learned these last several months, sometimes the way things have been is not the way that they will be. "It is time for the Syrian people to determine their own destiny, and we will continue to stand firmly on their side." Shortly after Obama issued his statement, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the move "will further tighten the circle of isolation around the [Syrian] regime." "The people of Syria deserve a government that respects their dignity, protects theirs rights and lives up to their aspirations. Assad is standing in their way." Britain, France and Germany also issued a statement calling for Assad to step down. The Syrian president has told the United Nations that all military operations against protesters have come to a halt, a UN spokesman said earlier Thursday. However, activists say nine more people have been killed in the central city of Homs. The calls for Assad to step down came the same day a UN human rights team <a href="http://www.trading666.com/others-brand-cigarettes-f2-66.html"><strong>wholesale marlboro lights cigarettes online </strong></a> said Syrian forces may have committed crimes against humanity. The human rights investigators' report calls for the UN Security Council to refer Syria to the International Criminal Court. The recommendation is expected to be a topic of discussion later Thursday at a closed meeting of the Security Council. "The mission found a pattern of human rights violations that constitutes widespread or systematic attacks against the civilian population, which may amount to crimes against humanity," the investigators said in their 22-page report. End of Story Content Back to accessibility links