US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has accused Syria's president Bashar al-Assad of chilling cynicism in his response to the uprising against his regime.
Her comments come as the Arab League announced it is delaying sending additional observers to Syria after some members of the first group were attacked this week.
More than 5000 people have been killed since the unrest began in March last year, according to the United Nations. The government says 2000 security personnel have died combating "armed gangs and terrorists".
The BBC reports it is impossible to verify the claims, as access for foreign journalists has been severely restricted.
Hillary Clinton criticised Mr Assad for failing to take responsibility for the violence in his country.
She said he had instead delivered a chillingly cynical speech on Tuesday, during which he blamed foreign countries and conspiracies for the unrest.
Mrs Clinton praised the leadership shown by the Arab League, but said the monitoring mission could not go on forever.
Mr Assad could not have impunity, she said, and the Syrian people deserved a peaceful transition.
Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani said the Arab League monitoring mission in Syria had so far failed.
