UN rights body condemns Syria

Associated Press

BEIRUT

The U.N.’s top human- rights body voted overwhelmingly Friday to condemn Syria over the slaughter of more than 100 civilians last week, but Damascus appeared impervious to the crescendo of global condemnation after a string of horrific massacres.

Syria’s most important ally and protector, Russia, voted against the measure by the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva. Russia has refused to support any move that could lead to foreign intervention in Syria, Moscow’s last significant ally in the Middle East.

New bloodshed was reported across Syria on Friday, with troops firing on protesters and more execution-style killings coming to light, while U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan urged Syrian President Bashar Assad once again to stop the violence.

As Russian diplomats in Geneva dismissed the resolution as “unbalanced” and voted against the text, Russian President Vladimir Putin promised to press the Syrian government for an end to the violence and insisted a political solution still was possible despite mounting frustration over the lack of diplomatic progress.

“It requires a certain professionalism and patience,” Putin said in Germany.

Russia, along with China, has twice used its veto power to shield Syria from U.N. sanctions.