Assad has been Shi'ite Iran's main ally

"All of these latest oakley sunglasses countries say that want a peaceful solution, but they undertake individual and collective actions that undermine the very meaning of (U.N.) Security Council resolutions," he added. Assad has been Shi'ite Iran's main ally in the Arab world. Annan conceded that U.N. efforts to resolve the crisis so far had been a failure. "Clearly, we have not succeeded. And maybe there is no guarantee that we will succeed," he said. News on Friday that one of Assad's personal friends had defected and was headed for exile in France was hailed by Clinton as proof that members of the latest oakley 2012 Damascus leadership were starting to "vote with their feet" and leave a sinking ship. Manaf Tlas, a Republican Guard brigadier and son of the longtime defence minister under Assad's father Hafez, has yet to surface abroad or clearly to throw his lot in with the rebels. But his desertion, leaked by family friends, was confirmed by the French government, giving a boost to the "Friends of Syria" conference it hosted ioakley whole sale reviews in Paris where participants agreed to "massively increase" aid to Syria's opposition.