“We are all appalled by the sickening violence we continue to witness in Syria. Security forces and militias have bombarded cities with no regard for civilians. There have been massacres and point-blank killings. We have seen it last week in a village near Hama, and the week before in Houla, where security forces and militias killed men, women and children. Those responsible for these crimes must ultimately be held to account and we must do everything to stop the bloodshed.

We are at a critical moment. The situation is deteriorating day by day as the regime’s behaviour reinforces the most radical elements on all sides. And yet, most ordinary Syrians long for a transition that avoids bloodshed and keeps the country together – respecting minorities. If the descent into further militarization continues, it will not only spell disaster for the people of Syria, but also the broader region, including Lebanon, where developments are extremely worrying.

As I discussed with Kofi Annan – over recent weeks and again on Friday – we must spare no effort to avoid a catastrophe. Assad has no place in the future of Syria. His regime fails to comply with its own commitments and everyday underlines its lack of legitimacy. The implementation of Annan’s plan is not easy and some have questioned its viability. Yet, despite all the challenges, it remains today the best way forward.

We must act decisively to prevent further bloodshed while avoiding fuelling the flames of sectarian violence.

The only way forward now is to reinforce Kofi Annan’s leverage with the Syrian Regime and make his Mission more effective. No other option has been able to gather any kind of international support. Kofi Annan – to whom I pay tribute for his extraordinary efforts in exceedingly difficult conditions – has the support and legitimacy of the international community (UN) and the Arab League. As SG Ban-Ki Moon told the General Assembly on Thursday: the Annan plan must remain the centre piece of our efforts. But that alone is not enough. We need to do much more to further isolate the regime, build real and operational international consensus, strengthen international sanctions and press the government towards compliance and transition.

As Kofi Annan himself has made very clear, all concerned, and in particular the Members of the UN Security Council and those who have influence on the Regime, Russia and China in particular, must unite and apply more effective pressure to find a solution.

That is why we need to agree on a roadmap that reinforces Annan and his plan. This should involve 3 key priorities: 1) a more effective contact group, including Russia and China, to coordinate support to Annan and exert influence on the Regime. I therefore welcome the idea of a “Contact group” of key actors on the Syrian crisis as announced by Kofi Annan last Thursday in the UNSC. The international community must show unity in this critical moment. 2) united action by the UNSC to add more robust and effective pressure, including the reinforcement of sanctions under Chapter VII; and 3) international consensus around a political process and transition.

With these priorities in mind, I have engaged with Kofi Annan and other leaders to seek a new consensus, including in Istanbul last week, where I attended a special meeting on Syria and at the recent EU-Russia Summit.

Work on the political process cannot wait. It is crucial for the credibility of the international efforts and to show the Syrian people that there is a path leading to a better rather than a more fragmented Syria. But for this to happen, the opposition must finally come together and put its differences aside – new leadership is not enough. A stronger and more united opposition that represents a credible alternative for all Syrians is essential. We discussed on going efforts with Turkey and we are coordinating closely with the Arab League. We continue to meet the different factions and groups in the opposition. Now we are working on two seminars that will feed into the Arab League plans to organize a larger meeting.

In addition to our sanctions, diplomatic efforts, and support to the UNSMIS Mission, which are highly appreciated by the UN, humanitarian assistance remains the top priority for the EU. Innocent civilians and children are paying the consequences of this crisis. I am working closely with Kristalina Georgieva to use all the tools and instruments to deliver our assistance.

The EU has already allocated over EUR 28 million to address the humanitarian needs inside Syria and in neighbouring countries. Now the Syrian Government must implement the agreed comprehensive humanitarian response plan without excuses and delays.

Last week the Commission approved the EUR 23 million special measure – that I had previously announced in this plenary – to support civil society within Syria and neighbouring countries hosting Syrian refugees.

During my visit to Istanbul last week, my Crisis Coordinator engaged with the Turkish authorities and visited the Camps at the border. I offered any further help Turkey may need. Turkey is doing a truly great job in dealing with Syrian refugees and they can count on our support.

We will continue to call for accountability and support UN efforts in this regard. This is something we owe to the victims. The UN is investigating the latest massacres and the Human Rights Council – with our full support – is setting up a Committee of Investigation.

While some Member states have decided to withdraw and expel Ambassadors, our Delegation in Damascus will remain open for as long as possible. This has been the request of many of you and, most importantly, of Syrians themselves. They are our ears, eyes and hands to help are needed there.

On the MEPP our objective remains the same. I have been very clear from the beginning of the Arab Awakening that developments in the region make the peace process and a negotiated solution even more urgent and important, not less. While we are all paying a lot of attention to the situation in Syria, Egypt and elsewhere, ending the conflict remains a top priority and a fundamental EU interest.

Kofi Annan has called on “every individual with a gun” in Syria to put down arms, saying he was “horrified” by a weekend massacre that killed nearly 110 people, including 32 children under the age of 10.

He was to meet Walid al-Muallem, Syria’s foreign minister, on Monday before holding talks with President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday, a Syrian official source said, according to AFP.

The mass killings in Houla, one of the deadliest attacks in the 15-month uprising has brought widespread international criticism of the Syrian regime.

The EU High Representative Catheirne Ashton strongly condemn the “heinous act perpetrated by the Syrian regime against its own civilian population”, despite the agreed ceasefire and presence of UN observers and also urge the members of the UN Security Council to remain seized of the matter.

Syria has strongly denied allegations that its forces carried out the killings, but the U.N. Security Council after an emergency session Sunday condemned government forces for shelling residential areas.

The violence of the killings, documented in amateur videos posted online on Youtube by activists showed scores of bodies, many of them young children, covered with blankets.

There are now more than 280 unarmed military observers in Syria to monitor a tenuous ceasefire which started on April 12.

Annan is to brief the Security Council on Wednesday on his efforts to end the syrian crisis.  The UN says more than 10,000 people have been killed in the uprising against Assad. It was Annan’s second visit to Syria since the start of his mission three months ago which was on March 10.

“Those responsible for perpetrating this crime must be held to account,” they added.

Observers from the UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) confirmed the killing after having viewed the bodies in the village of Houla, where they also confirmed from an examination of ordnance that artillery and tank shells were fired at a residential neighbourhood.

General Robert Mood, the head of UNSMIS, issued a statement in which he said that UN observers went earlier today to Houla, where they counted more than 32 children under the age of 10 and over 60 adults killed.

“The circumstances that led to these tragic killings are still unclear,” the statement noted, while adding that whoever is responsible should be held accountable.

“This indiscriminate and disproportionate use of force is unacceptable and unforgivable. The killing of innocent children and civilians needs to stop,”  he stated.

All three officials demand that the Syrian Government immediately cease the use of heavy weapons in population centres, and called on all parties to halt violence in all its forms. Mr. Annan is contacting the Syrian authorities to convey the expectations of the international community, and he will also do so during his forthcoming visit to Syria.

The statements came as the Free Syrian Army said it could no longer commit to the ceasefire brokered by Annan unless there was an immediate solution to regime violence, Al Jazeera reported.

“We announce that unless the UN Security Council takes urgent steps for the protection of civilians, Annan’s plan is going to go to hell,” a statement by the FSA said on Saturday.

The peace plan drawn up by Annan, which took effect on April 12, stipulated that UN observers be deployed in the country to monitor a ceasefire. But the violence and bloodshed have not stopped.

State news agency SANA accused “armed terrorist groups” for the killings, adding that “clashes led to the killing of several terrorists and the martyrdom of several members of the special forces”.

According to videos by activists posted by Local Coordination Committees, opposition group, it showed scores of dead bodies, including children, covered by blankets following the ‘massacre’.

Activists from the region said government forces shelled Houla for 12 consecutive hours after Friday prayers. After that pro-assad thugs, known as shabiha, raided the villages, killing men on the streets and slaughtered women and children in their houses, activists said.

“The  Syrian National Council (SNC) calls on the UN Security Council to convene an immediate meeting to discuss the situation arising from the massacre in the presence of international observers, and determine the responsibility of the United Nations towards the genocide and forced displacement carried out by the regime against unarmed civilians,” according to a statement by SNC.

“The shelling on the town of Houla, Homs lasted for 12 hours, followed by a terrible massacre committed by the regime and its mercenaries,” SNC added.

Some of the victims were hit by heavy artillery, others “slaughtered with knives while entire families, were massacred  SNC said.

The National Council has also called on the Syrian people to declare mourning for three days and  and respond to the massacre, with more demonstrations, especially in Damascus and Aleppo.

Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory while giving a lower death toll of 55, agreed that this was “a real massacre” and complained that “U.N. observers are just staying silent” on the matter, according to Al Arabiya.

Meanwhile, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon blamed the Syrian government on Friday for much of the “unacceptable levels of violence and abuses” occurring every day in violation of a U.N.-backed peace plan.

Ban also called on all elements of the opposition to stop the violence and respect human rights.