US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta urges Assad to step down
US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta has said that the US will continue to work with its allies to try to force Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to "do the right thing" and step down.
Speaking at a news conference in Cairo after his first meeting with the newly elected Egyptian President, Mohammed Mursi, Mr Panetta confirmed that securing sites in Syria where chemical and biological weapons are being stored was also a top priority.