BEIRUT — Pressure mounted on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad Monday after the Jordanian king suggested he step down ahead of a crucial Arab meeting in Morocco today aimed at exploring specific measures to sanction Syria for its ongoing crackdown against protesters.
Jordan’s King Abdullah offered the most explicit condemnation yet of al-Assad by an Arab leader in an interview with the BBC.
“If Bashar has the interest of his country, he would step down. But he would also create an ability to reach out and start a new phase of Syrian political life,” he said.
The king said he would resign if he were in al-Assad’s position, adding that he “would make sure whoever comes behind me has the ability to change the status quo that we’re seeing.”
The Arab League is due to meet today to implement its decision to suspend Syria’s membership. Among the measures that will be discussed are possible ways of providing protection for civilians in Syria, the Arab League’s secretary general Nabil Elaraby told reporters in Tripoli, Libya. He said the league may turn to the U.N. Security Council for help.
In a further setback for Damascus, Turkey said Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu would meet with the Arab foreign ministers attending the gathering in Morocco, a sign that the region is closing ranks against Assad after he failed to implement an Arab League peace plan.
There was no indication that the Syrian government was preparing to comply with the peace plan. The Local Coordination Committees reported that 23 people were killed by Syrian security forces Sunday, most of them in anti-government demonstrations.
Also Sunday, the official Syrian Arab News Agency reported the funerals of 12 members of the security forces who had been killed by what it called “armed terrorist groups.” The Syrian government has labeled its opponents “terrorists” since the uprising began, but the growing number of military funerals being reported daily offers one indication that the protest movement is starting to acquire arms.
