...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
envoy Lakhdar Brahimi on Friday urged the Security Council to come together on Syria, venting frustration with all sides while denying rumors he plans to resign.
Brahimi told the 15-member council that Syrian
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneckal-Assad
Lord of the Baath...
is "not in a mood for dialogue" and that the only hope for stemming the violence is if the council agrees unanimously on a plan of action, diplomats told Agence La Belle France Presse.
The Security Council has been divided about how to proceed on Syria, which has been wracked by fighting since March 2011, with Russia and China repeatedly blocking efforts by the West to step up pressure on Damascus
...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world...
"I have probably said practically the same thing I said every time," Brahimi told news hounds later.
"The situation is extremely bad and we need action from the Security Council," he said, as he expressed frustration not only with the United Nations
...the Oyster Bay money pit...
, but with the Syrian regime and opposition rebels.
"I indicated the opposition and the government have got to accept to come to negotiations and both sides have got to accept that these negotiations are necessary," Brahimi said.
He added that the recent pledge of loyalty to al-Qaeda by an increasingly powerful Syrian rebel group, the Al-Nusra Front, would not affect his mandate.
"The way to protect Syria from extremism is once again to solve the problem," Brahimi said. "The only way is to bring this war to an end."
The veteran Algerian diplomat has made little progress in the seven months since he was appointed to try to mediate an end to the Syrian conflict, which has claimed tens of thousands of lives and seen hundreds of thousands flee.
But Brahimi appeared irritated as he brushed aside talk of resignation.
"I have not resigned," Brahimi told news hounds.
"Every day I wake up, I think I should resign, but I have not so far," he said, adding that "there is no foundation" to the rumors.