US News

Syrian death toll hits 1,300

AMMAN, Jordan — The main Syrian activist group said yesterday that a violent crackdown against anti-government protests has killed 1,300 civilians, and called on President Bashar al-Assad to step down.

The Local Coordination Committees said in a statement that power must be handed over to the army and that an internationally supervised conference should convene within six months to write a new constitution and “stop Syria from sliding into chaos.”

More than 10,000 Syrians have been arrested since the uprising erupted in the southern Hauran Plain three months ago.