European leaders have urged Syria to end violence against demonstrators after tanks were sent to crush opposition in Deraa where an uprising against his rule first erupted.
International criticism of Assad's crackdown, now in its sixth week, was initially muted but escalated after the death of 100 protesters last Friday and Assad's decision to storm Deraa, which echoed his father's 1982 suppression of Islamists in Hama.
In the coastal city of Banias, forces also braced for a possible attack as protesters chanted 'the people want the overthrow of the regime', said a human rights activist.
Washington said yesterday that it was studying targeted sanctions against Syria.
Today the Dutch Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal proposed that the European Union suspend aid to Damascus and impose an arms embargo and sanctions against its leaders.
In Turkey, Syrian opposition figures pleaded for international help.
Abdah said he had reports that some officers were defying orders and trying to stop Assad loyalists from entering Deraa.
Security forces have shot dead 400 civilians in a campaign to crush the uprising against Assad's 11-year rule, Syrian human rights organisation Sawasiah said on Tuesday.
Another 500 people have been arrested in the last two days.
US urges its citizens to leave Syria
The US says it is considering sanctions against Syrian government officials to increase pressure on President Bashar al-Assad to end the violent crackdown.
The measures could include a freeze of the officials' assets and a ban on them doing business in the US.
A US official said the sanctions would likely come in an executive order signed by President Barack Obama.
However, a final decision has yet to be made and there was no word on whether Mr Assad might be a target, the official said.
Sanctions would mark a more assertive approach by the Obama administration, which has been criticised for not doing more to stop Mr Assad's efforts to crush the uprising against his 11-year rule.
The US has ordered embassy family members and some non-emergency personnel to leave Syria.
'The Department of State has ordered all eligible family members of US government employees as well as certain non-emergency personnel to depart Syria,' the department said.
