Pamuk joins Rushide, Eco to urge UN condemnation of Syria

Seven well-known international authors, including Turkish Nobel Laureate Orhan Pamuk, as well as Salman Rushdie and Umberto Eco, this week sent a letter to the UN Security Council urging it to pass a resolution condemning Syria for the crackdown on its citizens. "The outcome of this resolution is in your hands. It qualifies the repression in Syria as a crime against humanity," said the letter, addressed to the 15 Security Council members. "It does not propose sanctions against Syria nor military intervention. It is limited to condemning the repression and clearing the path for investigations into the crimes against humanity. However limited, this resolution is necessary." The letter, published on Wednesday on the website of French intellectual and writer Bernard-Henri Levy, is also signed by David Grossman, Amos Oz and Wole Soyinka. Levy was instrumental in introducing the Benghazi-based Libyan rebels to French President Nicolas Sarkozy ahead of his decision to intervene against Muammar Gaddafi in March.