UN chief appeals for Syria’s Assad to stop violence against civilians

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon of the United Nations on Monday renewed his appeal to Syrian President Bashar Al Assad to stop the violence against civilians after reports of a new military crackdown just a day earlier.

Mr. Ban, speaking to reporters in northeast Japan, said that he had delivered a strong message to President Assad in a phone conversation on Saturday ahead of his report on Syria to the Security Council due on August 10.

“I hope he takes that situation very seriously and takes necessary measures respecting the will of the people,” the UN chief said when asked about latest signs that Mr. Assad continued to defy international pressure.

Residents of a Syrian provincial capital Deir Al Zor said government tanks stormed the city on Sunday, in the latest crackdown on five-month protests against President Assad’s rule. Activists said 50 people had been killed in the attack, while the government denied the assault had taken place.

Syria has barred most journalists, making it hard to confirm events.

The military assault on Deir Al Zor, about 400 km (250 miles) north-east of Damascus, was launched a day after Mr. Ban’s conversation with the Syrian President.

Mr. Ban is visiting Japan’s northeast nearly five months after a magnitude 9.0 earthquake unleashed a deadly tsunami that killed more than 20,000 and triggered the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl 25 years ago.