DAMASCUS: The new international envoy tasked with ending Syria's civil war said the country's conflict was a threat to world peace.
Lakhdar Brahimi also said the 18-month-old crisis was deepening and the gap between political parties was widening.
The UN-Arab League envoy spoke to reporters in the Syrian capital Saturday following his first meeting with President Bashar Assad.
It was Brahimi's first visit to the country since taking up a job he himself has called ''nearly impossible''.
Brahimi replaced former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan who left the job in frustration in August after his efforts failed to stem a conflict that started in March 2011.
At the press conference Saturday, Brahimi said the civil war in Syria posed a threat to the Syrian people, the region and the ''entire world''.
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