Syria: Military Action An Option Says France

UN and Arab League special envoy Kofi Annan has warned the violence in Syria had reached "tipping point", as France said military intervention should not be ruled out.

Mr Annan held a press conference after holding "frank" talks with Syria's President Bashar al Assad, while governments across the globe expelled senior Syrian diplomats in response to the killing of at least 108 people in Houla on Friday, including 49 children and 34 women.

He urged Mr Assad to "act now" to bring an end to the bloodshed.

"We are at a tipping point. The Syrian people do not want the future to be one of bloodshed and division. Yet the killings continue and the abuses are still with us today," he said.

"Let me stress once again: the violence must stop and the six point plan must be implemented. I need the president to act now. I need other parties to do their part."

Mr Annan conveyed to Mr Assad the international community's grave concern about violence in the country, including the Houla killings.

The mediator, who brokered brokered a repeatedly-violated ceasefire, told the president "bold steps" were required for his six-point peace plan to succeed, including a halt to fighting and the release of people arrested in the 15 month-long uprising.

He finished with a message to the Syrian people, saying: "I know that you want a peaceful future. We must not let the bitterness and bloodshed consume the country.

"For the sake of Syria, and for the region, we must end this violence and begin to restore hope in a political transition to a democratic future - a future in which all communities have their place. I am totally committed to this cause and I am sure you all are."

Mr Assad told Mr Annan that "terrorist groups" have stepped up their killings and kidnappings, and the success of the peace plan depends on "the end of terrorism", according to Syrian state TV.

"The success of the Annan plan depends on the end of terrorist acts and those who support them and the smuggling of weapons," the president was quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, French President Francois Hollande said military intervention to end the crisis in Syria could not be ruled out if it was backed by the UN Security Council.

"It is not possible to allow Bashar al-Assad's regime to massacre its own people," he told France 2 TV.

"Military intervention is not excluded provided it is carried out under the auspices of international law, namely via a Security Council resolution."

"It is down to myself and others to convince Russia and China, and also to find a solution which is not necessarily a military one," said Mr Hollande, who is due to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Paris on Friday.

However, the White House said it remained opposed to military action in Syria, reasoning that it would only lead to more carnage.

Britain expelled the Syrian charge d'affaires and two other diplomats in protest at the recent massacre.

Several other countries, including the US, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Australia, Canada, and Switzerland took similar measures against Syrian envoys in their capitals.

The nations are trying to increase the pressure on the regime of Mr Assad amid mounting violence by government forces against civilians and opposition members.

Most of the victims in Houla were civilians and entire families were shot in their homes, the United Nations has said.

Rupert Colville, spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said fewer than 20 of the killings were due to artillery and tank fire.

Survivors have told UN investigators that most of the other victims died in two waves of executions by pro-government "shabbiha" militiamen in the nearby village of Taldaou, Mr Colville said.

He added: "Almost half of the ones we know of so far are children - that is totally unpardonable - and a very large number of women as well.

"At this point it looks like entire families were shot in their houses."

At least 32 of the 49 children of the massacre were under 10 years of age.

The Syrian government has denied responsibility for the atrocity, blaming "terrorists".

Syria's charge d'affaires, Ghassan Dalla, is the country's top diplomat in London, and British officials said the UK was expelling him and two others as part of a co-ordinated effort with other nations.

The 15-member Security Council has condemned the massacre "in the strongest possible terms".

Significantly, Russia signed up to the wording - having previously tried to water down criticism of Damascus.

The United States said it hoped the massacre in Houla triggered a "turning point" in Russia's reluctance to take tougher action against President Assad, as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov expressed his "deep alarm"and called for an investigation into the incident.

Russia, like China, has previously opposed two UN Security Council resolutions condemning the Assad regime.

More than 13,000 people, most of them civilians, have been killed in the uprising against the Assad regime, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights .