New UN-Arab League envoy: future of Syria will be built by Syrians

Newly-appointed joint U.N.-Arab League Representative for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi said Tuesday the future of Syria will be built by Syrians and called for the full support of the international community. Speaking to a meeting of the General Assembly on Syria, Brahimi also said he will go to Cairo next week to meet with Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Al-Arabi. Brahimi said he will then travel to Damascus. Brahimi, making his first formal remarks since officially assuming his position on September 1, said that a "grave situation" now prevails in Syria. "The death toll is staggering, the destruction is reaching catastrophic proportions, and the suffering is immense," Brahimi said. "The future of Syria will be built by its people and none other," Brahimi told the meeting. "The support of the international community is indispensable and urgent. It will only be effective if all pull in the same direction."