Russia vows to block U.N. mandate for Syria intervention as U.S. condemns killings

By Al Arabiya with Agencies

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov Thursday vowed there would be no U.N. Security Council mandate for outside intervention in Syria, indicating Moscow would use its veto to block any military action, as the White House again called on other countries to halt support for the Syrian regime and to join in backing a political transition there.

“There will not be a Security Council mandate for outside intervention, I guarantee you that,” Lavrov told reporters on the sidelines of a trip to Kazakhstan by President Vladimir Putin, according to AFP.

Russia and China have blocked further U.N. action against Syria over its bloody crackdown, and Assad’s military has been supplied by Moscow and Tehran.

The White House, meanwhile, condemned a reported new massacre in Syria as “outrageous targeted killings of civilians” and again called on other countries to halt support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and to join in backing a political transition there.

The White House, in a statement, also described the Syrian government’s refusal to let U.N. monitors into the area as “an affront to human dignity and justice,” according to Reuters.

Opposition activists said up to 50 women and children were among at least 100 people killed in the Sunni Muslim village of Mazraat al-Kubeir near Hama on Wednesday.

“The future of Syria will be determined by the Syrian people, and the international community must come together in support of their legitimate aspirations,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said inthe statement.

via Russia vows to block U.N. mandate for Syria intervention as U.S. condemns killings.