UN Demands Independent Probe of Syrian Massacre

The U.N. human rights chief is calling for an independent investigation into last week’s slaughter of dozens of civilians in the Syrian town of Houla, as activists on Friday reported the killing of at least 12 more civilians.

Navi Pillay’s comments were provided in a statement to the U.N. Human Rights Council during an emergency session Friday in Geneva on the May 25 massacre that killed at least 108 people – nearly half of them children. She called for the Syrian government to provide full access to investigators to look into the killings, which could constitute crimes against humanity.

The killings in Houla have sparked widespread outrage, with some leading diplomats calling for an international coalition to remove Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from power.

Russian President Vladimir Putin again rejected the use of the force in Syria Friday, though he told reporters Moscow was seeing “emerging elements of a civil war.” Putin spoke in Berlin following a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.