Violence persists in Syria despite peace plan
Top story: U.N. envoy Kofi Annan announced on Tuesday that Syria had accepted his proposal for a ceasefire ahead of peace talks between President Bashar al-Assad and his opponents, but activists are reporting today that Syrian forces are continuing their assault on opposition strongholds everywhere from Hama to Homs, which Assad toured on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, at an Arab League summit in Baghdad, foreign ministers are also discussing ways to urge Syria to halt its crackdown on civilians and grant humanitarian groups access to the country. Syria's opposition groups coalesced around the umbrella Syrian National Council and expressed skepticism about the Syrian regime's commitment to peace during a meeting in Turkey on Tuesday, but signs of disunity remained. Kurdish delegates walked out of the conference, claiming their views were not being taken into account.
In an interview with the BBC published on Wednesday, U.N. human rights chief Navi Pillay accused the Syrian government of systematically detaining and torturing children.
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