Syria: Violence Continues as EU Considers Additional Sanctions

Syrian security forces killed two people after storming a northern village in search of an alleged high-profile defector from President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.  This increased the death toll from the past two days to about 19.  Yesterday, security forces increased pressure on demonstrators by firing on thousands of marchers, resulting in 17 deaths.

On Friday, the European Union announced it was banning oil imports from Syria.  British Foreign Secretary William Hague said that the European Union could further strengthen sanctions on Syria after targeting its oil industry and “will press for more U.N. action.” Hague said, “A ban on any new purchases of Syrian oil by EU states from Saturday was a ‘very substantial’ step given that it covered around 95 percent of Syrian exports and 25 percent of the revenue to the Syrian government.”