Syrian toll exceeds 3,500, says UN

THE death toll from the eight-month Syrian uprising has reached 3,500, the United Nations said.

The UN blamed “the brutal crackdown on dissent” for the rising toll, which has increased in recent days despite a deal brokered by the Arab League. It was designed to end the unrest and crackdown by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces.

Ravina Shamdasani, for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that “more than 60 people are reported to have been killed by Syrian security forces since Syria signed the peace plan”.

The latest tally also includes 19 people killed on Sunday during the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha.

The UN said its figures were conservative and based on “credible sources on the ground” though the agency itself has no representative in the country, Ms Shamdasani said.

Violence in the central city of Homs has spiralled out of control with anti-regime defectors from the armed forces resisting a week-long government offensive.

Mr Assad’s regime is scrambling to clear out Baba Amr, another centre of resistance, as Damascus faces fallout from the Arab League for defying a peace plan brokered by the 22-nation body to end the bloodshed.