Arab countries join condemnation of Syrian crackdown

Three influential Arab countries— Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwaitrecalled their ambassadors on Monday in protest of President Bashar al-Assad’s brutal crackdown on demonstrators, the New York Times reported.

The withdrawal of ambassadors from the three Gulf countries signified growing frustration in the region with the mounting death toll in Syria. In a statement Saudi King Abdullah, called on the Syrian president to stop what he called the “killing machine and end the bloodshed.” 

The reluctance by regional allies such as Saudi Arabia and Turkey to join western diplomatic efforts to condemn the Assad regime at the United Nations "had thus far been a major impediment to a more forceful stance on the crackdown," the Telegraph reported.

Saudi Arabia has used its own armed forces to help crush an uprising this spring in Bahrain.

"But in a region where leaders have long proved reluctant to criticize each other, the move suggested that Saudi Arabia saw more potential turmoil in Mr. Assad staying than in him leaving. For months, Saudi Arabia, fearful of more unrest in the region, had tried to protect the status quo," the New York Times reported.

The king condemned the loss of lives and said that hope for the region would not come for “the blood of innocent people."

The Saudi monarch’s comments followed similar statements by the Arab League and the Gulf Cooperation Council, a regional group that comprises Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. The Gulf council statement urged Syrian leaders to “resort to wisdom and introduce serious and necessary reforms that would protect the rights and dignity of the people, and meet their aspirations,” the New York Times reported.

"The real question now is how this shift will affect Russian and Chinese opposition to a UN Security Council Resolution condemning the attack. Both countries – which have oil interests in Syria – agreed to a presidential statement last week, short of a full UN resolution, but this announcement has been overtaken by the scale of destruction in Hama," said Andrew Tabler, a Next Generation Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

The Obama Administration is working with European allies to find ways to target Syrian energy. "Western powers and their regional allies are increasingly understanding that just talking to Assad about his brutality will not be enough to stop it," Tabler added.