Syria: Killing Goes On, According to Arab League
Syrian Killings Continue, Arab League Calls for Observer Departure
(CNN) — Syrian tanks have withdrawn from residential areas in cities, but snipers remain a threat, and killings are still occurring, the head of the Arab League said Monday.
“There is still gunfire, there are still snipers, and we hope that all that will disappear,” Nabil el-Araby said in Cairo, adding: “There is gunfire from various directions, which makes it hard to tell who is shooting.
“There is no doubt that killing is ongoing, but I can’t pinpoint the numbers,” he said.
Syrian government tanks have moved to the outskirts of cities, he said after an advance team of Arab League monitors returned from the violence-wracked country and began preparing an initial report.
That report will be completed “in the coming days” and presented to the Arab League’s foreign ministers, who will decide on what action to take, el-Araby added. “We will not wait for the mission to end” before taking action, he said.
Arab League observers entered Syria last week after the United Nations estimated that 5,000 people had been killed since March in an uprising against the government.
President Bashar al-Assad’s government says it is cracking down on armed terrorists.
The Arab League aims “to provide protection to Syrian civilians,” el-Araby said Monday, adding that it was asking for a cease-fire and for the names of detainees in Syrian prisons.
Nearly 3,500 prisoners have been freed, he said.