Britain says UN to mull Syria sanctions

The UN Security Council will consider imposing international sanctions on Syria, implicated in the murder of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq al-Hariri.

Jack Straw says sanctions against Syria will be considered

Asked in a BBC interview if the council would set sanctions for Syria at a soon-to-be-held special session, Britain’s Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said: “We are going to consider that.”

Straw, who is on a tour of Alabama with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, said on Friday the report showed Syria had to stop interfering in Lebanon, its small neighbour.
   
“They have to change and they have to change pretty radically,” Straw said. “And the international community has to take a stand.”
   
Asked if the goal of the international community was “regime change” in Syria, Straw said there was no discussion about that.

A UN probe into al-Hariri’s killing in a Beirut bomb blast on 14 February pointed to Syria’s involvement. Damascus has, however, rejected the findings.
   
The United States, Britain and France are seeking to call a meeting about the report at the council for members’ foreign ministers, which would include Rice and Straw, a British official said. A date has not been set, he added. 

Source: Reuters