Introduction to the evening news 28-11-2011

The Syrian crisis is escalating and there is absolutely no conjunction between the Arab League’s suggestions and those made by Syria. Today, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem responded to the League’s measures, and it was clear from his stance that Damascus will not go back, but will rather call on the Arab League to go back on its stances. While Muallem acknowledged the economic crisis by revealing that his country withdrew 95% of the Syrian deposits in the Arab states, he said that halting all transactions with the Syrian Central Bank is tantamount to declaring an economic war.          

In parallel, the Turkish-European mobilization to face Syria has intensified; in fact, an EU meeting will be held in Brussels this week, in the presence of Turkey to discuss the steps necessary to deal with Damascus’ campaign against protesters, according to the French Foreign Ministry’s statement.       

This anticipated movement comes at a time when a United Nations commission of inquiry on Syria accused the Syrian troops of committing crimes against humanity.       

In Egypt, the first voting day came to an end. A steady stream of voters flocked to the polling stations through the day, forcing the military council to extend voting by 2 hours.        

In Lebanon, no noteworthy stances were made as for the governmental quake; maybe they are waiting for PM Najib Mikati to return tomorrow from the Vatican where he met the Pope today.