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Foreign Minister Westerwelle condemns new wave of brutal violence by Syrian Government and announces further sanctions
Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle issued the following statement today (31 July) on the ongoing violence of the Syrian Government against its own population:
“What we are currently witnessing in Syria is an outrage. President Assad’s regime is continuing to shoot at its own people, again causing numerous deaths this weekend.
The German Government demands that President Assad put an immediate end to violence against peaceful demonstrators. Only an immediate turnaround, serious dialogue and a willingness to reform can prevent even greater bloodshed.
If President Assad is still not prepared to change course, we will impose further sanctions together with our EU partners.
In cooperation with the USA and our partners in the region, especially Turkey, we are continuing to do our utmost to convince the regime to take a different tack. We remain firmly convinced that the United Nations Security Council must respond to the violence. We will not slacken in our efforts to win over the countries that have hesitated to join us thus far.
The Syrian people have called for democracy, change and an end to tyranny. They have our full support in this.”
Despite international protests, the Syrian Government has met demonstrations with unrelenting brutality in recent days. This weekend alone, numerous Syrians have lost their lives to the violence of security forces in Hama and elsewhere in the country.
The European Union is thus planning to again expand its sanctions against the Syrian leadership: sanctions are being imposed on additional individuals responsible for acts of violence against the people.