"How long can this situation continue? I mean in Bosnia, now we have Ban Ki-moon [the UN secretary general] apologizing 20 years after. Who will apologise for Syria in 20 years' time? How can we stay idle?"
That's what Turkey's foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu told The Guardianabout the situation in Syria. He went on to say that Turkey had been deeply involved in the diplomatic effort to bring the conflict to a peaceful resolution.
"But there should be a much more concerted effort by the international community," he said. "The best way we can see now is direct humanitarian intervention."
At the same time, The New York Timesreports, Turkey continued its diplomatic pursuit, joining the fray and calling for a ceasefire during the upcoming Id al-Adha holiday.
The Times reports:
"Reinforcing the cease-fire call, Mr. Davutoglu said on Friday: "It is especially important for the Syrian regime, which has launched bombs on its people with planes and helicopters, to halt these attacks immediately and without preconditions."
"'Let's hope that the Syrian regime listens to this call by the international community and stops these attacks during Id al-Adha,' he said, according to The Associated Press. 'In response, we expect the opposition to abide by the cease-fire in the same way.'"
As we told you earlier this week, the U.N.'s special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi is making his first big push toward a solution this week in the Syrian capital of Damascus.
The conflict between rebels and the regime of President Bashar Assad has raged for more than a year and a half. Activists estimate that at least 30,000 people have been killed.
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