Assad calls for parliamentary elections in Syria on May 7

London, Mar.14 (ANI): Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose armed forces are engaged in a bloody crackdown on opponents of his rule, has called for parliamentary elections on May 7.

The elections were announced under a new constitution passed last month.

According to The Guardian, the announcement of elections, on a government website, came as the former UN chief Kofi Annan, who held talks with Assad at the weekend, said he was waiting for Syria's reply on "concrete proposals" for an immediate cessation of hostilities and allowing humanitarian aid into conflict zones.

The latest diplomatic moves came as a Syrian government-controlled media outlet claimed that the north-western city of Idlib had fallen to the army and as the United Nations issued a new estimate of the number of refugees who have fled during the year-long uprising, saying it had created at least 30,000 refugees, up 5,000 from figures given last month.

Fighting was reported, too, in the eastern city of Deir al-Zor and in Syria's third largest city, Homs, as the uprising increasingly resembles a full-blown civil war. (ANI)