Clinton: Syria Has Killed 2K of Its Own People

'Assad has lost his legitimacy to govern the Syrian people'
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 5, 2011 9:39 AM CDT
Hillary Clinton: Syria Has Killed 2K of Its Own People
In this June 20, 2011 file photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syrian President Bashar Assad delivers a speech in Damascus, Syria, at Damascus University.   (Anonymous)

Hillary Clinton accused the Syrian government of killing more than 2,000 of its own citizens during its ongoing brutal crackdown against opposition protesters as the Obama administration moved to further isolate President Bashar Assad and his inner circle. The administration is unhappy with Assad's actions in trying to quell the five-month-old uprising, "Assad has lost his legitimacy to govern the Syrian people," Clinton said.

Clinton's comments, made at a news conference with visiting Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird, came just hours after White House press secretary Jay Carney said Assad is "on his way out" and the administration hit a prominent pro-regime businessman and his firm with sanctions. "The actions that he has taken ... are reprehensible and appalling," Carney told reporters. "And we believe that country will be better off without him." The European Union imposed additional sanctions on Syria this week and on Wednesday, the UN Security Council condemned the violence. (More Syria protests stories.)

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