France says Assad still shutting his ears while Washington urges him to step down

The White House described the situation in Syria as “extremely dangerous”, calling on President Bashar Assad to step down “immediately”.  

“The U.S. strongly condemns the crackdown on opposition figures no matter where it takes place”, White House spokesman Jay Carney said on behalf of U.S. President Barack Obama,adding that “these practices confirm that reform and dialogue promises made by the Syrian regime are empty.”  

“Friday’s attacks that led to the assassination of Mishaal al-Tammo, a Kurdish Syrian opposition figure, reflect the Syrian regime’s last attempts to eliminate the peaceful opposition in Syria”,Carney said in a statement, adding that Assad must step down before he takes his country further in this dangerous path.  

On the other hand, the French government condemned the “cruelty” in Syria, adding that it was shocked by the assassination of the opposition leader Mishaal al-Tammo.   The French Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the ongoing violence in Syria shows that Assad is still shutting his ears to the international community’s calls. “France stands with all the Syrians who have fought for their freedom”, the statement added.  

Prominent Syrian Kurdish opposition figure Mishaal al-Tammo (53) was shot dead by gunmen on Friday in his home in eastern Syria.