Syria sanctions planned by US
US condemns Syrian government's 'brutal violence' and considers freezing assets of senior officials accused of rights abuses
The White House is preparing to introduce new sanctions against the Syrian regime in response to a military crackdown that saw tanks and armoured cars deployed against protesters on Monday.
The Obama administration condemned "the brutal violence used by the government of Syria", describing it as deplorable, and adding: "The United States is pursuing a range of possible policy options, including targeted sanctions, to respond to the crackdown and make clear that this behaviour is unacceptable."
Human rights groups estimate that about 350 people have died so far in Syria, 100 of them on Friday. Troops mounted a major assault Monday on Deraa, the city where the uprising began a month ago, and Douma, a suburb of Damascus.
It was apparently the first time that tanks have been used. Ammar Qurabi, head of the National Organisation for Human Rights in Syria, who is in exile in Egypt, was quoted by Reuters as saying at least 18 people died in Deraa alone.
The US, having announced sanctions unilaterally, is putting pressure on the UK and other European countries to impose sanctions against the Syrian regime.
The US treasury department and other American agencies are discussing freezing the assets of senior officials accused of human rights abuses and banning them from travelling to the US or doing business there. Such sanctions are mainly symbolic, as the US has long had stringent measures in place against Syria and has little trade with the country. Sanctions by European countries, with whom Syria has extensive trade, would have more impact and several members of the Syrian government have assets in Europe.
In another sign of increasing diplomatic pressure, the UN security council is considering a draft statement condemning the violence and calling for restraint.
Such a statement, introduced on Monday by four European members of ! the secu rity council Britain, France, Germany and Portugal is a necessary first step towards any eventual imposition of UN sanctions. The draft backs a call by UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon for an investigation into the killings. A UN diplomat said: "We hope there will be a vote on adopting it within the next 24 to 48 hours."
The western response towards Syria falls between the military intervention in Libya and the hands-off approach to Bahrain. The government in Bahrain is engaged in a violent crackdown against pro-democracy demonstrators, but it is close to Saudi Arabia America and Britain's closest Arab ally.
The US and its European allies, after a few expressions of disquiet about the suppression of dissent in Bahrain, have been relatively quiet. The initial response to Syria was equally slow, with Barack Obama making his first statement condemning the violence only on Friday. This reflects fear in the US, Europe and Israel that a new Syrian government could turn out to be more difficult to deal with than the current president, Bashar al-Assad, and could pose more of a threat to Israel.
Over the last decade, both US and European governments have engaged in fruitless talks with Assad that they hoped would lead to a rapprochement and would woo it away from its alliance with Iran.
The UN high commissioner for human rights, Navi Pillay, added her voice to the international calls for restraint and an investigation into the killings. She said Assad's response so far had been erratic. "Just a few days after the announcement of sweeping and important reforms, we are seeing such disregard for human life by Syrian security forces. The killings must stop immediately," she said.
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