OIC concerned over escalating tension in Syria

Syrian state media announced yesterday that the country would hold a referendum on February 26 on a new constitution. "President Bashar al-Assad issued today (Wednesday) a decree setting Sunday, Feb. 26, as the date for the referendum on the draft constitution," the official SANA news agency reported. The draft document promises "political pluralism" and democratic elections and limits presidents to two seven-year terms. Speaking on the issue, Organization for Islamic Conference (OIC) Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu said that the international society should not consider any military intervention in Syria. "The lessons taken from Libya, Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia show that a military intervention would not yield good results," Ihsanoglu said.