5,000 Killed in Syria: UN

The death toll mounts as the international community stalls over what do with Bashar al-Assad.

The United Nations' human rights commissioner says that more than 5,000 people have now been killed by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. That number, which includes civilians, army defectors, and soldiers executed for refusing to follow orders, comes as clashes between Syrian security forces and civilian protesters continue to claim casualties today, with at least 11 killed and 26 wounded in a fight in the city of Iblis. The 5,000 is also a sharp revision from the 4,000 offered just last week by Navi Pillay, the rights commissioner, suggesting that violence in the Middle Eastern country is only ramping up nine months into the uprising. The Syrian government says an additional 1,100 soldiers, police, and other regime members have been killed in the clashes. Pillay has urged the UN Security Council to issue war crimes warrants against Assad and his regime, but the council has been reluctant to pass harsh measures against Assad due to opposition from Russia and China.