British PM broaches 'safe passage' for al-Assad

(CNN) -- Britain's prime minister has raised the issue of giving Syrian President Bashar al-Assad "safe passage" out of his war-torn country if it could lead to real change.

"Done. Anything, anything, to get that man out of the country and to have a safe transition in Syria," David Cameron told Al-Arabiya TV in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in an interview aired on Tuesday.

"Of course I would favor him facing the full force of international law and justice for what he's done. I am certainly not offering him an exit plan to Britain, but if he wants to leave, he could leave -- that could be arranged," Cameron said during a visit to Abu Dhabi.

Britain has provided millions of pounds in nonlethal practical assistance to the Syrian rebels, such as communications equipment and help for refugees.

Cameron's statement reflects the frustration in the West and much of the Arab world over failed efforts to halt a full-blown civil war that has left more than 35,000 people dead.

The Syrian crisis began in March 2011, when the government fiercely cracked down on peaceful protests. The crisis escalated and is now regarded as a civil war, pitting the government against rebels and opposition groups fighting al-Assad.

Nations such as Britain and the United States have been unable to pass tough initiatives in the U.N. Security Council because Russia and China have blocked such action. U.N.-Arab League point men, first Kofi Annan and now Lakhdar Brahimi, have been unable to forge effective cease-fires.

There has been a stream of high-level government and military officials and soldiers defecting in recent months. Manaf Tlass, a brigadier general and a former close friend of al-Assad, left Syria's Republican Guard in July. Prime Minister Riyad Hijab has also defected.

The Turkish media reported Tuesday that seven Syrian army generals defected to Turkey, the latest such departures.

The political and military opposition is still growing and gaining clout. Opposition members met in Qatar for a third day Tuesday in an effort to unify and strengthen Syria's rebellion.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said last week the opposition Syrian National Council -- largely made up of Syrian expatriates -- should no longer be considered the "visible leader" of efforts to form a government to replace al-Assad. Clinton said the opposition must include seats for "those who are on the front lines fighting and dying today."

An SNC spokesman told CNN on Tuesday that the group will issue a statement after the end of the four-day opposition meetings Wednesday night.

"We are aiming to rearrange the structure of the SNC body and this will be the best answer to the latest international calls to form a stronger and a more unified opposition front to speed up the end of the bloodshed in Syria and to topple the Assad regime," spokesman George Sabra said.

A barrage of attacks across the country killed at least 75 people Tuesday morning, the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria said. At least 26 of the deaths were in Damascus and its suburbs.

One video posted online shows large plumes of dark smoke billowing into the sky. The activists said the smoke came from an explosion at an oil pipeline in Homs as government and rebel forces battled nearby.

Regime forces attempted to storm the city of Harasta in the Damascus suburbs, and MiGs are carrying out airstrikes in southern neighborhoods of Damascus, the LCC said.

CNN cannot independently verify the authenticity of the video or of death tolls in the country, as the Syrian government has restricted access by foreign journalists.

The Syrian government blamed "terrorists" for Tuesday's shooting death of Mohammad Osama al-Laham, the brother of parliamentary speaker Mohammad Jihad al-Laham. State-run media said terrorists fired on him in Damascus as he was driving to work.

The Syrian government often refers to rebels as "terrorists," but there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the reported attack.

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/11/06/world/meast/syria-civil-war/index.html?eref=edition