Syrian forces press assault as Annan pursues peace bid

Syrian forces pressed their assault on various regions across the country yesterday as international peace envoy Kofi Annan stressed there can be no deadline to ending the year-long crisis.

Clashes were reported in the central flashpoint city of Homs, in Damascus province and other areas, leaving at least 32 people dead, including 19 civilians, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

At least 16 people, among them four soldiers and two children, were killed as regime forces pounded several neighbourhoods of Homs, the Britain-based watchdog said.

In Damascus province, seven soldiers and five civilians were killed in clashes in two towns – Harasta and Zabadani.

The violence came as Annan, the UN and Arab League envoy to Syria, said no time limit could be set to ending the revolt against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad that erupted last March.

“I think only Syrians should decide the issue of Assad’s resignation,” Mr Annan told Russian news agencies in remarks translated into Russian.

“It’s important to sit all Syrians behind a negotiating table,” he said, speaking a day after meeting Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

The former UN chief said it was “incorrect to give any deadlines” for ending the violence in Syria, in which more than 9,100 people have already been killed, according to monitors.

Mr Medvedev warned yesterday that Mr Annan represented the last chance for avoiding a civil war in Syria, and promised him Russia’s full support.

Mr Annan is to hold negotiations on Tuesday with Beijing, which he said he hoped will also support his mission.

Russia and China have vetoed previous resolutions to condemn Mr Assad’s regime. But last week they backed a UN Security Council peace plan for Syria put forward by the UN, Arab League envoy.

Mr Annan’s plan calls for a halt to fighting, with the government pulling troops and heavy weapons out of protest cities, a daily two-hour humanitarian pause to hostilities and access to all areas affected by the fighting.

It also calls for the release of people detained in the uprising. However, it imposes no deadline for Mr Assad to carry out these demands, nor does it call for his resignation.