Council may act on Syria, not under Lebanese presidency

A UN diplomat says even if the Security Council members agree, which he doubts, on a text against Syria for its continuing crackdown on protesters, its adoption will not take place this month while Lebanon is Council President. The diplomat told Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) that Lebanon does not want to be remembered in History as the neighbour which allowed, as Council President, the adoption of the text which is expected to impose sanctions on the Assad regime. British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant told reporters today that the British-drafted resolution, supported by the Council's European countries - France, Germany and Portugal - and the US, "remains on the table. We are continuing consultations with other Council members. We are not taking it off the table and we do hope to put it forward to a vote before too long. "Russia and other Council members still oppose the measures in the proposed resolution." According to UN figures, some 2,600 Syrian civilians died and dozens of thousands more are detained or not accounted for.