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''.