- AMMAN: Syria will boycott an Arab League meeting to follow up its decision to suspend Damascus from the organization, as regional states stepped up efforts to isolate President Bashar Assad for refusing to end a crackdown on eight months of protests.
The meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Rabat on Wednesday comes four days after they decided to discipline Syria for pursuing the crackdown instead of implementing an Arab peace initiative.
The League has stopped short of calling for Assad’s departure or proposing any Libya-style military intervention.
"In light of statements by officials in Morocco, Syria has decided not to participate in the Arab meeting in Rabat," the agency said, without giving details.
Morocco’s foreign minister said "Syrian colleagues" were welcome at the meeting but did not say if Syria’s foreign minister could attend.
