LONDON (AFP) - British Foreign Secretary William Hague said strong support for a resolution criticising Syria at a United Nations human rights committee Tuesday ‘sends a signal of united condemnation’ of the regime.

‘Today’s UNGA (United Nations General Assembly) resolution sends a signal of united condemnation of the Syrian regime’s systematic human rights abuses,’ said Mr Hague in a statement.

‘I welcome the wide support it received, including the fact that it was co-sponsored by Jordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Turkey.’ He added: ‘As long as the crisis in Syria continues the international pressure on the (President Bashar al-) Assad regime will only intensify.’ The resolution was backed by 122 countries at the UN General Assembly’s human rights committee and only 12 nations joined Syria in opposing it.

It ‘strongly condemns the continued grave and systematic human rights violations by the Syrian authorities,’ highlighting the ‘arbitrary executions’ and ‘persecution’ of protesters and human rights defenders.