France, the U.S. and other countries are showing little confidence in the week-old Syria cease-fire, increasing the pressure on President Bashar al-Assad to halt the violence while aiding his opponents.
Fifty-seven countries, meeting in France, voted yesterday to tighten sanctions on Syria as Russia accused Persian Gulf nations of arming opposition fighters. Members of the so-called Friends of Syria group are openly supporting the rebels with non-lethal assistance, such as communications equipment, and weighing gestures to further cast Assad’s regime as a pariah, including the expulsion of Syria’s ambassadors, according to European diplomats who aren’t authorized to speak to the media.
