Arab League to Syria: You’re Suspended

Al-Assad caught with his pants down as the league votes to sanction his regime.

At its meeting in Cairo, the Arab League has sanctioned Syria and suspended its membership following Bashar al-Assad's continued violent crackdown on protestors and political dissidents. After Syria ignored the Arab League’s call for dialogue with the opposition, the group voted to impose political and economic sanctions against Syria and urged its members to withdraw their ambassadors. In a damning vote, 18 member states voted for the sanction with Iraq not voting and Syria, Lebanon and Yemen opposing the motion. Though the league did not advocate the imposition of a no-fly zone or other types of intervention, the move still represents a massive blow to the regime that has killed an estimate 3,500 protestors since March. Syria has replied that the move only serves a Western agenda and violates the league’s charter. Maybe appealing to rules and charters isn’t Assad’s safest bet.

Image courtesy of Reuters.