UN warns Syria against revenge attacks

The United Nations envoy for Syria on Wednesday called on its new authorities to prevent a "cycle of retribution and revenge" after the overthrow of the brutal rule of Bashar al-Assad.

At a Security Council meeting, Geir Pedersen spoke of worrying reports of "men killed in the exchange of fire and reported serious ill-treatment in detention" taking place under the country's transitional authorities.

He lamented reports of "kidnapping, looting, expropriation of property, and forced evictions of families from public housing."

Assad was overthrown in December by rebel forces led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, whose leader Ahmed al-Sharaa is now the country's interim president.