The Obama Administration is in "intense" discussions to get Cabinet member Ray LaHood's son and 16 other Americans released from the new Islamist government in Egypt. Meanwhile, the Administration has made no mention of the former American Marine facing execution in Iran.
The new President of Yemen was sworn as Islamists blew up a car, killing 26 Yemenis.
The ICRC failed, as has every other organization, it convincing the Syrian Government to stop killing its people, even for 2 hours a day, as the Artillery Bombardment of Homs continues.
A spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross said negotiations with the Syrian government and opposition groups produced “no concrete results” on Saturday. The ICRC spokesman said negotiations with both sides will continue on Sunday in an attempt to enter the city and evacuate anyone in need of help.
A Red Cross spokeswoman told VOA the group is trying to get Syrian authorities to agree to a daily two-hour pause in the fighting, so that humanitarian workers can provide assistance to victims.
On Friday, the Red Cross and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent evacuated seven wounded people and 20 women and children from the Baba Amr district of Homs. They have not yet been able to rescue two wounded Western journalists and recover the bodies of two others killed in the violence.
The Syrian government's bombardment of Homs continued on Saturday, so thousands of people are trapped in the city, unable to leave safely. Activist groups say dozens of people were killed in government attacks on opposition groups across the country, including several victims in Homs, but no independent confirmation of those reports is possible.
Meanwhile, international pressure on Syria continues to mount, A group of Western and Arab-led delegates from the international group “Friends of Syria” is demanding that President Bashar al-Assad's government end all violence immediately and allow the delivery of foreign humanitarian aid to hard-hit areas.
In Washington, President Barack Obama said the U.S. and its allies will consider “every tool available” to stop the slaughter of innocent people in Syria. He said it is absolutely imperative for the international community to send a clear message to Mr. Assad that it is time for his “regime to move on.”
In Tunis, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton predicted that Mr. Assad will pay a “heavy cost” for violating the rights of the Syrian people and ignoring international will by attacking the opposition.
U.N.-appointed investigators estimate the death toll from the uprising at 6,400 civilians and 1,680 army defectors. Syrian government officials have said they only took military action when under armed attack from “terrorists.”
U.S. officials say the Obama administration is in “intense discussions” with Egypt to resolve the issue of dozens of activists, including 16 Americans, due to go on trial on Sunday.
The Americans are among 43 activists who are accused of receiving illegal funds from abroad and carrying out political activities unrelated to their civil society work.
The case has raised already high tensions between Cairo and Washington and came as the U.S. is attempting to establish better ties with the military council that took power last year following the ousting of former president Hosni Mubarak.
The Americans accused in the case have been banned from leaving Egypt after some of them left the country, and others have taken refuge at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo. Among those accused is Sam LaHood, Egypt director of the International Republican Institute and son of the U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
The remaining suspects include Germans, Palestinians, Jordanians and Egyptians.
Washington has warned that going forward with the trial could prompt a cut to Cairo's $1.3 billion in annual U.S. military aid.
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