The situation in Syria took a new turn for the worse last week as the UN observer force in the country suspended operations due to a deteriorating security situation. Phillips said this didn’t matter because he believes the idea of a UN-negotiated peace was always a mirage.

Sixty-three people were reportedly killed in Syria yesterday, half of them government troops who died in battles with Syrian rebels. An emergency NATO meeting will be held on June 26 to discuss Syria’s downing of an unarmed Turkish jet fighter on June 21. Syrian officials said the incident was not an attack on Turkey and claims the plane violated Syrian airspace.