BEIRUT: Amnesty International slammed Wednesday Russia and China for vetoing a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Syria on a crackdown the U.N. says has led to the death of around 3,000 people.
“Permanent members of the Security Council that used their veto yesterday to block a binding resolution on Syria have utterly failed in their responsibilities to protect the Syrian people,” Amnesty International said in a statement.
The resolution, which failed to pass Tuesday, received nine votes in favor. Lebanon and three members abstained, while Russia and China cast the only votes against the resolution, which was drafted by France with the cooperation of the U.K., Germany and Portugal.
“Those countries which ducked this decision by abstaining must also bear a heavy responsibility for allowing the brutal crackdown on legitimate dissent in Syria to continue unchecked,” the statement added.
Prompted by protests against long-standing rulers in several Arab countries, Syrians took to the streets in their country in mid-March calling for reforms. Damascus, which blames unrest in Syria on a conspiracy aimed at targeting its leadership, responded with what rights groups describe as a brutal crackdown.
The U.N. estimates that over 2,700 people, mostly civilians, have been killed during the crackdown.
“It is shocking that after more than six months of horrific bloodshed on the streets and in the detention centers of Syria, the governments of both Russia and China still felt able to veto what was already a seriously watered down resolution," said Malcolm Smart, Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Director.
Syrian authorities deny targeting civilians and blame the deaths on “armed terrorist gangs.”
International pressure on Syria has increased since the protests started earlier this year. U.S. President Barack Obama has called on Assad to step down and once close ally Turkey has openly threatened to issue a series of sanctions on Damascus. The E.U. and U.S. have also separately issued several rounds of sanctions on Damascus.