Arab League urged to be firm as Syrian toll rises

SYRIA’S opposition yesterday urged the Arab League to stand strong against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime as the United Nations said its crackdown on dissent has left more than 3,500 people dead.

In a letter, the Syrian National Council (SNC) urged the pan-Arab bloc “to take a strong and effective position against the Syrian regime commensurate with the dangerous development of the situation in Syria”.

Syria’s National Council, which groups the main opposition currents, focused its appeal on the central city of Homs, after declaring it a “humanitarian disaster area” in need of “international protection of civilians”.