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Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jW_gEehwbmk7y0PwrbpGqddUptMQ
U.S. to Tell Assad that He Must Go
(AP) Bradley Klapper - The Obama administration is preparing to explicitly demand the departure of Syrian President Bashar Assad and hit his regime with tough new sanctions, U.S. officials said Tuesday as the State Department signaled for the first time that American efforts to engage the government are finally over. Officials said the move will be a direct response to Assad's decision to step up the crackdown against demonstrators by sending tanks into opposition hotbeds. The new formulation will make it clear that Assad can no longer be a credible reformist and should leave power, the officials said. "You can't have any kind of partnership with a regime that does this kind of thing to innocents," added State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland.