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EU Council extends additional sanctions against Syria

23 August 2011 17:34 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The Council of the European Union introduced on Tuesday additional sanctions against Syria, which has seen a bloody crackdown on opposition protests, APA reports quoting RIA Novosti.

â€œIn view of the gravity of the situation in Syria, these acts add 15 Syrian individuals and five entities to the list of those targeted by an asset freeze and travel ban,â€ the council said in a statement.

The new sanctions will come into force after they are â€œpublished in the Official Journal of the EU of 24 August 2011,â€ the statement added.

The previous set of sanctions against Syria was introduced by the European Union on August 1 and the following day a group of U.S. senators introduced a bill expanding sanctions on Syria’s energy sector.

The introduction of sanctions comes in the wake of reports that Syrian opposition figures have formed a National Council.

Earlier in the day, the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) passed a resolution that calls for a probe into the Syrian authorities’ crackdown against civilian protesters.

China, Russia, Cuba and Ecuador voted against the resolution, citing the principle of non-interference in Syria’s internal affairs and said the UN-backed measures were "an unnecessary intervention."

Syria has been rocked by mass protests demanding reforms and the resignation of President Bashar al-Assad for almost six months.