Syrian opposition forces appeal to Moscow for intervention after UN and Arab League efforts fail to stop the slaughter by government troops.

Syrian rebel forces are appealing to Moscow for intervention after the United Nations and Arab League have both failed to stop President Bashar al-Assad from slaughtering his people.

Leaders of the opposition Syrian National Council are in Moscow meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, news agencies reported Wednesday.

In the wake of the latest admission by U.N. And Arab League special envoy Kofi Annan that political solutions seemed to be ineffective, SNC representatives traveled to Russia to meet with Kremlin officials over the stalemate.

“We are discussing a political mechanism for the solution of the Syrian crisis that was proposed by the Arab League,” SNC executive board member Basma Kodmani told reporters in a news conference prior to the meeting.

Meanwhile, Kofi Annan is expected to brief the U.N. Security Council later on Wednesday following his own separate meeting with Assad.

The presentation comes in advance of the July 20 deadline by when the Council must decide the future of the 90-day U.N. mission to the deadly civil war-torn nation.

Russia has circulated a draft resolution to Council members that would extend the U.N. Observer mission to Syria by three more months. The resolution does not, however, threaten the Assad regime with sanctions.