Gulf Arab states put pressure on Syria

Syria is under fire for its five-month-old brutal crackdown on protesters from Arab neighbours Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, after the countries recalled their ambassadors and called for President Bashar al-Assad to stop the violence. The criticism indicates that support for Assad’s regime is waning among previously loyal neighbours. The king of Saudi Arabia read a statement on state television calling for Assad to stop “the killing machine and end the bloodshed,” while Kuwait’s foreign minister said “the military option must be halted.”

New York Times