Annan in Syria hoping to save peace plan

Kofi Annan arrived Damascus on Sunday, his spokesman said, after the international envoy's admission that his peace plan has so far failed to end nearly 16 months of carnage in Syria.

"The Joint Special Envoy for Syria, Kofi Annan, arrived in Damascus this evening for talks with President Bashar Al-Assad," Ahmad Fawzi said of Annan's third trip to Syria since the outbreak of the conflict.

Earlier, Syrian foreign ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi had told AFP Annan would visit within the framework of his mission, for discussions with the Syrian leadership on the subject of the six-point plan" for peace.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned on Sunday that time was running out to save Syria from a "catastrophic assault," and as dozens more people were reportedly killed in the unrest-swept country.

Annan himself has said his UN-backed mission has so far failed to halt the bloodshed, while stressing that Russia and Iran must not be sidelined from peace efforts.

"Russia wields influence but I am not sure that the events will be determined by Russia alone... Iran is an actor. It has to be part of the solution. It has influence and we cannot ignore it," Annan told France's Le Monde daily.

He also expressed irritation that while Russia and Iran were mentioned by some as stumbling blocks to peace, "little is said about other countries which send arms, money, and have a presence on the ground."

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has accused the United States and its allies of opposing Assad's regime with the goal of dominating the Middle East and propping up Israel.

Iran's deputy foreign minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said on Sunday in Jordan that any attack on Syria would be "stupid" and "catastrophic."

"Military action Syria is unlikely and if this happens it would be stupid. Syria can defend itself without Iran's help. Any non-political solution would bring catastrophe to the entire region," he said.

Syria's state news agency SANA said on Sunday that the country's navy staged live fire exercises to "simulate the scenario of repelling a sudden attack from the sea."

Earlier, Clinton acknowledged that efforts led by Annan to get Assad's regime to halt its brutal crackdown on dissent were proving difficult.

"The sooner there can be an end to the violence and a begetting of a political transition process, not only will fewer people die, but there's a chance to save the Syrian state from a catastrophic assault that would be dangerous not only to the country, but the region," she told reporters.

"It should be abundantly clear to those who support the Assad regime their days are numbered."

-- Assad defiant --

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But Assad remained defiant.

The United States is "part of the conflict. They offer the umbrella and political support to those gangs to... destabilise Syria," he told German public broadcaster ARD in an interview to be broadcast on Sunday.

Clinton was speaking in Tokyo after talks in Paris on Friday where countries pledged to increase pressure on Assad to step down by seeking a tough UN resolution backed by a threat of sanctions.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who also attended the Tokyo conference, renewed his call on the UN Security Council for collective action to pressure Syria to stop the violence.

"President Assad must understand that things cannot continue as they are. Fundamental change is needed," Ban said.

He added: "Syrian people have suffered too long and too much. I sincerely hope that the member states of the UN Security Council will look into this issue more seriously... sharing the common responsibility by taking collective action as soon as possible."

More than 17,000 people have now died since the uprising began in March last year, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

On Sunday at least 46 people, including 20 civilians, were killed in violence across Syria, the Observatory said.

Syrian forces attempted to storm the rebel strongholds of Qusayr and Rastan in the central province of Homs, the watchdog said.

"Fierce clashes took place before dawn between regime forces and rebels in the vicinity of Qusayr, accompanied by heavy shelling on Qusayr and neighbouring villages as the regime tried to regain control," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.

In Rastan, "the army carried out shelling in an attempt to storm the city and clashed with fighters from the rebel combat battalions, forcing the government troops to retreat," he said.

Both towns have been outside regime control for months and are rebel strongholds.

Regime forces also shelled villages in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, killing three people including two children, as well as Aazaz town in the northern province of Aleppo, where three people were wounded, the Observatory said.

The highest casualties were reported in the central province of Hama, where six people were killed in the village of Sahel al-Ghab, it added.

Sunday's violence followed a bloody day in which 77 people were killed, mostly civilians, the watchdog said.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/annan-syria-hoping-save-peace-plan-164324248.html

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