Violence kills 80 across Syria as Erdogan dubbs regime as 'terrorist state'

Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi said on Wednesday that the time had come for changing the government in Syria and that a quartet of regional states proposed by Cairo to discuss the Syrian crisis would meet.   

"The quartet which Egypt has called for will meet now," Mursi told a meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo, without giving more details of the gathering that Cairo has said should include Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Egypt.   

He also said the time had come in Syria for "change and not wasting time speaking of reform. This time has passed now. Now it is time for change".     

For his part, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has created a "terrorist state".         

"The regime in Syria has now become a terrorist state," Erdogan told a meeting of his ruling AK Party.     

Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi announced that his country backs a “political transition in Syria to end worsening bloodshed after 18 months of unrest.” Jiechi repeated Beijing's opposition to forceful foreign intervention in the crisis.     

The new United Nations-Arab League mediator on Syria,Lakhdar Brahimi, had earlier announced, in his first address before the U.N. General Assembly, that the human losses in Syria are “stunning”, and the material damages are “disastrous”, calling on the international community to support his mission.    
 

On the field:
    
On the field, over 80 people were killed on Wednesday, mainly in Aleppo the second largest Syrian city to be fiercely shelled by warplanes, according to opposition websites. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, more than 50 unidentified bodies were found in the city.     

The Observatory pointed out that violence on Tuesday killed 116 persons including 58 civilians, 12 opposition fighters and 28 pro-regime soldiers, in addition to the 50 bodies found across the country.   

Meanwhile, Syrian state TV announced Wednesday that Aleppo is witnessing severe clashes mainly in the Sayf al-Dawla neighborhood and Al Jandoul roundabout where the army is chasing terrorists.     

The TV added that fertilizer bags, explosive ordinances, rifles, Molotov cocktails and communication devices were seized in large quantities across Syrian regions.