France to close embassy in Syria - Sarkozy

France is to close its embassy in Damascus to denounce the "scandalous" repression by President Bashar al-Assad's regime, President Nicolas Sarkozy to journalists on Friday at the end of a European Union summit. 

Reuters

"What is going on is scandalous, there are more than 8,000 dead, hundreds of children, and the risk that the city of Homs might be wiped off the map. This is absolutely unacceptable," Sarkozy told a news conference.

He said the Syrian government's response to efforts to get two injured French reporters, Edith Bouvier and William Daniels out of the country had been “particularly unacceptable”.

The two journalists are now on their way to France, having been transported first to Lebanon on Thursday evening.

Sarkozy also underlined that the EU had recognised the Syrian National Council "as a legitimate representative of Syrians", in its final summit communiqué.

"I am in favour of organising, at least on Syria's borders, humanitarian zones enabling people persecuted by the Syrian regime to leave," he added.