US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Sunday warned time was running out to save Syria from a “catastrophic assault” after international envoy Kofi Annan admitted his peace mission was failing. “It should be abundantly clear to those who support the Assad regime their days are numbered,” Clinton told reporters on the sidelines of a conference on Afghanistan in Tokyo. But she acknowledged that efforts, led by the United Nations and Arab League envoy Annan, to get the regime of President Bashar al-Assad to halt its brutal crackdown on the opposition were proving difficult. Clinton added: “The sooner there can be an end to the violence and a begetting of a political transition process, not only will fewer people die, but there’s a chance to save the Syrian state from a catastrophic assault that would be dangerous not only to the country, but the region.” Clinton was speaking after attending talks in Paris on Friday in which countries pledged to increase pressure on Assad to step down by seeking a tough UN resolution backed by a threat of sanctions.
