Dubai: UN chief Ban Ki-moon yesterday urged Syria's Bashar Al Assad to stop killing his own people, saying the path of repression was a "dead end".
"Today, I say again to President Al Assad of Syria: Stop the violence. Stop killing your people. The path of repression is a dead end," Ban said in a keynote address at a conference in Beirut on democracy in the Arab world.
"The winds of change will not cease to blow. The flame ignited in Tunisia will not be dimmed," he added.
Ban's comments came as the Syrian president announced a general amnesty for crimes committed during the popular unrest that has rocked the country over the past 10 months.
Arab League foreign ministers will meet on January 22 to discuss the findings of monitors sent to Syria, Egypt's Middle East News Agency said.
Opponents of Al Assad said the amnesty was meaningless because most detainees were held without charge in secret police or military facilities with no due process or legal documentation.
The Arab League monitors are due to complete on January 19 a report on the situation in Syria.
