President Assad of Syria must step down immediately, says Parliament

Parliament again calls on President Bashar al-Assad and his regime to step down immediately, in a resolution adopted on Thursday. It condemns the regime's brutal repression of its people, demanding an end to the violent crackdown, calls for an investigation into possible crimes against humanity, and backs the EU's tough sanctions combined with its readiness to develop a new partnership with Syria as soon as Assad goes and a democratic transition starts.

Parliament wants all those responsible for crimes against humanity to be "held to account by the international community".It calls again on the UN Security Council "and on Russia and China in particular" to ensure that international human rights standards are respected in Syria. It also "encourages the UN Security Council to refer the crimes committed by the Syrian regime against its people to the International Criminal Court"

MEPs welcome the new restrictive measures imposed by the EU on the Syrian regime on 14 November and 1 December, and want further sanctions "which target the Syrian regime but minimise the negative impacts on the population". They note that the EU has banned exports of information and communication technologies (ICTs) which can be used to violate citizens' human rights in Syria but that details of this ban have not been published while reports have indicated that EU-based companies have equipped the Syrian Government with technologies to intercept and monitor internet traffic and mobile communications in Syria.

The House points to UN Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay's warning on 2 December of the danger of civil war and supports the Arab League's efforts to end the violence, welcoming its proposal to send an observer mission. It asks Member States to consider expelling EU-based Syrian diplomats involved in intimidation of exiled opposition activists. It calls for greater cooperation with Turkey regarding the situation in Syria and it urges High Representative Catherine Ashton to start discussions with Turkey, the Arab League and the Syrian opposition on arrangements for setting up humanitarian corridors at the Syrian-Turkish border.

MEPs encourage the efforts of the Syrian opposition to establish a united platform to continue to engage with the international community and they continue to support the Syrian National Council.

Procedure: non-legislative resolution