Peace plan : Arabs to meet on floundering Syria peace

DAMASCUS: The Arab League on Sunday called an emergency meeting on Syria’s failure to implement its peace plan, as forces reportedly killed at least 12 demonstrators after Eidul Azha prayers. The announcement that Arab foreign ministers would hold the gathering came on the fourth straight day of deadly violence since Syria agreed to the League’s peace blueprint aimed at ending eight months of bloodshed. The Arab League said a meeting was called for next Saturday because of “the continuation of violence and because the Syrian government did not implement its commitments in the Arab plan to resolve the Syrian crisis.” Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem alThani, chair of an Arab panel on the crisis, has said “if Syria does not respect its commitments, the ministerial committee will meet again and take the necessary decisions.” A human rights group said that security forces killed at least 12 civilians as anti-regime demonstrations were staged across Syria on Sunday, the first day of the Eidus Azha feast marking the end of the hajj pilgrimage.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 7^th,  2011.