Taking a stand

The EU approved a fresh round of sanctions against Syria on Friday in a bid to force Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to end a brutal crackdown against anti-regime protesters.

Member states will no longer be allowed to invest in the country’s oil sector and the supply of bank notes made in Europe will also be banned, diplomats in Brussels said. It is the seventh round of sanctions imposed by the European Union.

"In view of the continuing brutal campaign by the Syrian regime against its own population, the European Union today decided to adopt additional sanctions against the Syrian regime," EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said in a statement.

"The EU’s restrictive measures are designed to have maximum impact on the Syrian regime, while minimizing any potential negative impacts on the Syrian population," she added.

Two people will also join the list of 54 individuals already facing travel bans and asset freezes due to their involvement in the Syrian crackdown. An additional six companies are to be added to a list of entities with which EU firms cannot do business.

Due to be introduced on Saturday, the sanctions add to an existing EU import ban on Syrian oil enforced in early September.

Rising death toll

The latest measures came as reports emerged that at least two civilians had been shot dead by Syrian security forces in separate incidents near the central city of Homs.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights one demonstrator was killed when security forces opened fire on a march in Talbisseh. Another was shot dead and three more were wounded when they gathered after Friday prayers in the village of Al-Zaafarana.

United Nations estimates suggest that some 2,600 people have been killed since anti-regime protests began in March.

Author: Charlotte Chelsom-Pill (AFP, dpa, AP)
Editor: Rob Turner