Syrian state media said on Monday soldiers have begun leaving the city of Hama, where scores of people are reported to have died during a clampdown on opposition protests.
The Sana news agency said the soldiers were leaving after "completing their mission of protecting civilians and tracking down the armed terrorist groups which had been wreaking havoc."
The United Nations stepped up pressure on the Syrian government on Wednesday, condemning "the widespread violations of human rights and the use of force against civilians by the Syrian authorities" in a UN Security Council presidential statement.
The government intensified its crackdown on protesters with the beginning of the holy Islamic month of Ramadan, fearing that the dissent would use massive daily prayers at mosques to organize larger protests.
On Saturday, after a week of bloody government crackdown on protesters, the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council urged Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to "refrain from the excessive use of force" and launch "serious reforms guaranteeing full civil rights to the Syrian people."
The statement came as part of growing international pressure on the Assad regime, including the strongest ever condemnation of the violence in Syria by the Arab League, which was issued on Sunday.
In its statement, the Arab League expressed its "strong distress" over the crackdown on protesters and urged Assad to "immediately" stop using force against civilians.
