Saudi Arabia withdraws Syria monitors

Prince Saud al-Faisal says country sending back monitors because Syrian government not compliant with Arab League plan; urges international pressure on Damascus

News agencies|Published: 01.22.12 , 19:55

Saudi Arabia will withdraw its observers from Syria because the mission has failed to end 10 months of bloodshed and will call on the international community to apply "all possible pressure" on Damascus to end the violence, its foreign minister said.

"My country will withdraw its monitors because the Syrian government did not execute any of the elements of the Arab resolution plan," Prince Saud al-Faisal told Arab foreign ministers meeting in Cairo.

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"We are calling on the international community to bear its responsibility, and that includes our brothers in Islamic states and our friends in Russia, China, Europe and the United States," Prince Saud said, calling for "all possible pressure" to push Syria to adhere to the Arab peace plan.

Saudi Arabia's decision came a week after the Emir of Qatar said that Arab troops should be sent to Syria to stop a deadly crackdown that has claimed the lives of thousands of people over the past 10 months.

נכשלו בסוריה? ישיבת שרי החוץ של הליגה הערבית בקהיר (צילום: רויטרס)

Arab League meeting in Cairo (Photo: Reuters)

In comments made on CBS "60 Minutes," Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani's said "For such a situation to stop some troops should go to stop the killing."

Qatar, which once had close relations with Damascus, has been a harsh critic of the 10-month crackdown by President Bashar Assad's regime. The wealthy and influential Gulf state withdrew its ambassador to Syria in the summer to protest the killings.

Earlier on Sunday, the Arab League announced that the observer's mission in Syria has would be extended for another month.

The decision was made during a meeting by Arab foreign ministers in the Egyptian capital, where they decided to add more members to the mission and provide them with more resources.