Russia urges talks amid unrelenting Syria violence

SYRIA: Syrian forces pushed a deadly crackdown on dissent on Tuesday despite a damning UN report accusing them of crimes against humanity and as Russia called for a political dialogue to end the violence.

Two days after the Arab League hit Syria with crippling economic sanctions, regional power broker Saudi Arabia urged its citizens to leave the country.

Activists, meanwhile, said nine civilians, among them a child, died in fresh violence across Syria.

An eight-year-old girl was among five civilians killed in the flashpoint central city of Homs. She was struck by a stray bullet from a security checkpoint, the Britain-based Observatory said. And three people were shot dead in Rankuss near Damascus, where at least 17 civilians have been killed since Sunday, it said.

The rights watchdog said another civilian was killed after gunmen believed to be mutinous soldiers attacked a car transporting members of the security forces, killing three. AFP