The United States on Monday welcomed the condemnations by Arab governments of the violent crackdown against pro-democracy protesters in Syria, dpa reported.
"We're very much encouraged, heartened by the strong statements that we've seen over the weekend by the Arab League, as well as by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)," State Department spokesman Mark Toner said.
Within the last three days, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the Arab League, and Saudi King Abdullah have condemned the violence and called for an end to the bloodshed.
On Monday, Kuwait and Bahrain summoned their ambassadors, while al-Azhar University - the world's oldest Sunni religious establishment - declared that "it is inevitable to put an end to this Arab-Islamic tragedy."
Toner said broader international pressure was beginning to build against the Syrian regime after months of violence against demonstrators. The Arab nations had been largely silent on Syria until recent days.
"The Arab League and the GCC both issued these very strong statements decrying the violence," Toner said. "And so we believe this is sending an important message. It's a message that must be sent."