Feed: CNN.com
Posted on: Tuesday, November 08, 2011 6:55 PM
Author: CNN.com
Subject: UN: More than 3,500 killed in Syria unrest

More than 3,500 Syrians have been killed since the government crackdown on protesters started in mid-March, a spokeswoman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said Tuesday.

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U.N.: More than 3,500 killed in Syria

By the CNN Wire Staff

November 8, 2011 -- Updated 1655 GMT (0055 HKT)

Report: Syrian protesters targeted

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

NEW: Opposition groups want the Arab League to take a strong stance
"We are deeply concerned about the situation," a U.N. spokeswoman says
Syrian leaders have blamed the violence on outside forces

(CNN) -- More than 3,500 Syrians have been killed since the government crackdown on protesters started in mid-March, a spokeswoman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said Tuesday.

"We are deeply concerned about the situation and by the government's failure to take heed of international and regional calls for an end to the bloodshed," spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said in a statement. "Since Syria signed the peace plan sponsored by the League of Arab States last week, more than 60 people are reported to have been killed by military and security forces, including at least 19 on the Sunday that marked Eid al-Adha."

Eight people were killed Tuesday in violence across Syria, according to the Local Coordination Committees of Syria, a network of opposition activists.

The network said Friday that more than 3,800 people have died in Syria since the protests erupted. President Bashar al-Assad and other officials have blamed the violence on outside forces attempting to undermine the 40-year rule of the president's family.

On Tuesday, the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency reported that families in one Homs neighborhood said "armed terrorist groups have besieged them in their houses, terrified and prevented them from going out." The terrorist groups planted land mines that were dismantled by the army, SANA said.

Meanwhile, a recently formed opposition group, based in Turkey and supported by a coalition of Egyptian activists, said Tuesday that it had begun "a broad political move to urge member states of the Arab League to take a strong and effective position against the Syrian regime" in light of the situation in the country, particularly in Homs, where much of the violence has taken place.

The Syrian National Council said its executive officers discussed a plan including "urgent visits" to Algeria, Sudan, Oman and Qatar. The plan also involves contacting foreign ministers in Arab countries including Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Libya and Kuwait "in order to inform them of the horrific crimes the regime is committing in the city of Homs and several areas that are subjected to extensive military attacks."

A delegation from the council will visit the Secretariat of the Arab League on Friday night and attend a meeting of the Arab Ministerial Council on Saturday "to relay the demands of the Syrian people."

Those demands, the council said, include freezing Syria's membership in the Arab League, imposing economic and diplomatic sanctions on Syria by member states, sending a file alleging human rights violations and genocide to the International Criminal Court, and recognizing the Syrian National Council as a legitimate representative of "the Syrian revolution" and people, among others.

On Monday, the council called on the Arab League and the U.N. "to provide protection to the civilians in Homs as a disaster area," according to a senior Arab League official.

The council wants "U.N. troops on the ground, which would require approval from the U.N. Security Council and the cooperation of the Syrian government," the official said. "It is a complicated process, yet the support of humanitarian agencies ... may be essential at this stage."

The Arab League on Saturday condemned the violence and warned of a crisis in the region if the Syrian government failed to comply with an agreement made last week with the group to "stop all violence" and allow outside observers into the country.

The government said it agreed to pull its army off the streets, release people jailed since the protests began in March and allow international journalists and Arab League observers to monitor the moves, Arab League ministers said last week. But opposition activists say that has not happened, and reports of violence in Syria have continued.