Syria frees prisoners as Turkey raises stakes

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Syria freed more than 1,000 prisoners on Tuesday in an apparent last-ditch bid to placate Arab leaders as Turkey and the United Nations warned President Bashar al-Assad to stop killing his own people.

PRESSURE MOUNTS ON ASSAD

A day after more than 70 people died in one of the bloodiest days of Syria's eight-month uprising, UN chief Ban Ki-moon said Assad must implement an agreement he made with the Arab League in an effort to find a peaceful resolution.

The United Nations says more than 3,500 people have been killed since mid-March in the Assad regime's crackdown on dissent.

"It is crucially important now that President Assad immediately stop killing his own people," Ban said, urging Arab states to exercise their ‘leadership’ in resolving the crisis quickly.

The United States meanwhile urged Arab leaders to step up pressure on Syria ahead of a meeting in Morocco at which the Arab League's suspension of Damascus on Saturday takes effect.

"We look for the Arab League tomorrow to again send a forceful message to Assad that he needs to allow for a democratic transition to take place and to end the violence against his people," State Department spokesman Mark Toner said.

SYRIA’S SHOW OF GOODWILL

Syria, in an apparent last-minute show of goodwill, released 1,180 prisoners who were arrested during the anti-regime protests, in line with one of the points of the Arab League plan.

"1,180 prisoners who had been involved in the incidents in Syria and who did not have blood on their hands were released today," Syrian state television reported.

There were also reports that a top dissident, Kamal Labwani, who was jailed for 12 years in May 2007, was freed.

TURKEY IMPATIENT ON SYRIA

But amid the gestures, Turkey took its growing impatience with Syria to a new level slamming Damascus with unprecedented threats of economic sanctions.

And Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, once a close political ally and a personal friend of Assad, said he had lost hope that the Syrian leader would back down from saving his regime through bloodshed.

"The Syrian government is on a very dangerous and narrow path, like the edge of a knife. A future cannot be built on the blood of the innocent, otherwise history will remember those leaders as ones who feed on blood," Erdogan said.

The harsh words came with talk of real consequences as Ankara threatened to hit Syria with energy sanctions by halting joint oil explorations and cutting power supplies to its southern neighbour, which has been struggling with electricity shortfalls for the past two years.

Energy Minister Taner Yildiz also said Turkey's Petroleum Corporation had stopped exploration with Syria's national oil company in six wells.

On November 2, Syria agreed to an Arab League roadmap to end the violence within two weeks but it failed to keep its end of the bargain, prompting the 22-member bloc to vote to suspend its membership.