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ICRC president, Syrian leaders to meet

By the CNN Wire Staff
People hold a huge Syrian flag at a protest against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad in Istanbul, Turkey, on August 28.
People hold a huge Syrian flag at a protest against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad in Istanbul, Turkey, on August 28.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • The ICRC president will meet with Bashar al-Assad and others
  • Protests have erupted across the country for nearly six months
  • At least two people died in Idlib province Saturday, activists said

(CNN) -- A top international Red Cross official will be meeting with Syrian leaders over the next two days to discuss "urgent humanitarian challenges" in the conflict-wracked nation and permission to visit detainees amid stark reports of prisoner abuse.

Jakob Kellenberger, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, was to arrive in Damascus on Saturday for a two-day visit, the ICRC said. He will meet with President Bashar al-Assad, Prime Minister Adel Safar, Walid Muallem, the minister of foreign affairs and expatriates, and the Syrian Red Crescent, the ICRC said.

This comes as Syria remains engulfed in nearly six months of public protest, and the regime has been reviled internationally for its crackdown on peaceful demonstrators, which has led to more than 2,000 deaths and thousands of arrests.

When Kellenberger visited Syrian officials in June, he reached an understanding that would give the ICRC and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent "enhanced access to areas of unrest, and negotiations would take place concerning ICRC visits to detainees."

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"The purpose of the talks to be held in the Syrian capital today and tomorrow is to review progress made in both these areas," the ICRC said.

"The ICRC president's visit will also offer an opportunity to discuss the impending start of ICRC visits to persons detained by the Ministry of the Interior. The ICRC visits detainees in order to assess the conditions in which they are being held and the treatment they receive."

This visit comes on the heels of an Amnesty International report detailing the deaths of at least 88 people in detention and widespread abuse of prisoners.

Another issue to be addressed is access to medical care for the sick and wounded. There have been reports of people not being able to access medical care during security operations.

Elsewhere in Syria, two people were killed on Saturday in Habash, a village in northwestern Idlib province, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an activist group. This occurred as security and military personnel stormed the city in search of wanted militants, the group said.

The latest international pressure on the Syrian regime was Friday, when the European Union banned the import of Syrian oil and added four more Syrians and three entities to a list of those targeted by an asset freeze and a travel ban.

Russia's foreign minister slammed the EU sanctions against Syria, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported Saturday.

"We've always said that unilateral sanctions will bring no good. It destroys the partnership approach to any crisis," Sergei Lavrov said.

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