U.N. calls for global action against Syria

GENEVA, Switzerland, Oct. 14 (UPI) -- With the death toll in Syria now topping 3,000, the top human rights official at the United Nations said it was time for the international community to act.

The U.N. Security Council has been unable to pass a resolution condemning the bloodshed in Syria. Veto-wielding Beijing and Moscow have objected to resolutions out of fear of tacitly encouraging a response like the ongoing conflict in Libya.

Washington's envoy to the United Nations, Susan Rice, said the failure to act was regrettable given the level of violence in the country. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said Friday the death toll since the uprising against Syrian President Bashar Assad began in mid-March has now topped 3,000. This includes at least 187 children, she added.

Pillay, who in August encouraged the Security Council to refer Syria to the International Criminal Court, said international action against Damascus was long overdue.

"The onus is on all members of the international community to take protective action in a collective and decisive manner, before the continual ruthless repression and killings drive the country into a full-blown civil war," she said in a statement.

Damascus blames foreign elements and the work of thugs for the violence in the country. According to broadcasts run on state television, a man confessed to opening fire on protesters in Homs with the aim of framing the Syrian military.