In brief: Sarkozy caught calling names

Jerusalem – The conversation was supposed to be private. But reports have surfaced that French President Nicolas Sarkozy called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “liar” while chatting last week with President Obama.

Several French-speaking journalists, including ones from Reuters and the Associated Press, overheard the remark through headsets that were supposed to be used for simultaneous translation during a news conference on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Cannes, according to wire reports.

Thursday’s exchange was first reported Monday by Arret Sur Images, a French website that analyzes media coverage.

Sarkozy was apparently not aware that his comments could be heard by reporters gathered in another room when he reportedly said of the Israeli leader: “I can’t stand to see him anymore, he’s a liar.”

Obama, whose response was heard only through a French translation, was quoted as saying: “You are fed up with him, but me, I have to deal with him every day.”

The comments are likely to cause embarrassment to both leaders as they try to revive stalled peace talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders. There was no immediate comment Tuesday from Sarkozy’s office, the White House or Netanyahu’s office.

U.N. reports 3,500 killed in Syria

Beirut – The death toll in the Syrian uprising has soared to at least 3,500 people, the United Nations said Tuesday, a sobering measure of the scope of a military crackdown that has bloodied city after city but failed to crush the 8-month-old revolt against President Bashar Assad’s regime.

Under the strain of daily killings, some Syrians see a dangerous fracturing of society as long-festering resentments over religion, sectarian identity and poverty bubble to the surface. Moreover, there were new signs that an uprising that has so far been largely unarmed is increasingly starting to fight back, threatening a rise in the bloodshed.

The dangers have been on display this week in the country’s third-largest city, Homs. This week, security forces have been besieging the city for the third time this year to stamp out what has been epicenter of the revolt.