Americas

Americas

U.S. denounces killings of civilians in Syria

07 June 2012 22:29 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The White House on Thursday denounced the reported killings of civilians in the Qubair village in Syria’s Hama province, calling for joint efforts in support of a political transition in the Arab country, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

"The United States strongly condemns the outrageous targeted killings of civilians including women and children in Qubair in Hama province as reported by multiple credible sources," White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement.

"This, coupled with the Syrian regime’s refusal to let UN observers into the area to verify these reports, is an affront to human dignity and justice," he said.

Earlier Thursday, Syria’s state TV rejected as "categorically baseless" media reports claiming that shelling by government troops killed more than 80 people in the village. Rather, it blamed armed groups for the massacre committed Wednesday.

"There is no justification for this regime’s continued defiance of its obligations under the Annan plan, and Assad’s continued abdication of responsibility for these horrific acts has no credibility and only further underscores the illegitimate and immoral nature of his rule," Carney stated.

"We call once more on all nations to abandon support for this brutal and illegitimate regime, and to join together to support a political transition in Syria -- one that upholds the promise of a future for which far too many have already died," he said.

Kofi Annan, the UN-Arab League joint special envoy for Syria, told the UN General Assembly on Thursday that both the Syrian government and the armed opposition had failed to carry out his six-point peace plan, which aims for a cessation of violence in the Middle East country.

Russia on Thursday urged all concerned parties to rally behind the Annan plan, saying there was no alternative plan to end the violence gripping Syria since mid-March 2011.