UN-Arab League mediator Kofi Annan is set to step down from his role at the end of August upon the expiration of his current mandate. Speaking on his decision UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that Kofi Annan deserved “profound admiration” for the use of his skills and influence in the “most difficult” of assignments with regards to Syria.

Opposition forces have claimed that up to 50 people were killed by Syrian government troops as a suburb in central Damascus was shelled on Thursday. However a video purporting to show the execution of men loyal to the regime by rebels has continued the argument that atrocities are being committed by both sides in the conflict.