Syria: President Bashar al-Assad keeps to hard line

In his third address to the nation since protests began in March, he said Syria should deal with people's demands for reform but that a "small faction" was exploiting popular grievances.

He said a national dialogue would shape Syria's future and urged people who had fled to Turkey to return.

After the speech there were reports of further protests in several cities.

Local co-ordinators for the protesters said reforms were no longer their demand. The only solution was a change of regime, their spokesman Ali Othman told the BBC.

Other opposition activists said Mr Assad's speech was addressed to his loyalists - not to his opponents.

Protesters complained that there was no announcement on ending the violence, nor was there any mention of holding the security services accountable for the crackdown, the BBC's Lina Sinjab in Damascus reports.

But Mr Assad's supporters said the speech was encouraging and responsive to people's demands.

Syrian government spokeswoman Bouthaina Shaaban told the BBC that the majority of Syrians "consider that today is a new dawn for the future of Syria".

Rights groups say at least 1,300 civilians have been killed in demonstrations since March, and more than 300 soldiers and police.

The speech comes as European Union foreign ministers meeting in Brussels warned of further sanctions against Syria.

A statement said the sanctions would be aimed at achieving "a fundamental change of policy by the Syrian leadership without delay".

Meanwhile, the US said it wanted to see "action, not words" on the reforms pledged by Mr Assad.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul said the speech was "not enough".

"Assad should clearly and precisely say: 'Everything has changed. We're transforming the system into a multi-party one. Everything will be organised according to the Syrian's people will, and I will be carrying out this process,'" he told journalists in Ankara.

"As soon as the Syrian president says that he will lead the transition in his country, we will see that things will change."

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