BEIRUT (AP) Oct 18, 2016 — The Latest on the developments in the Syrian civil war, The Human Rights Council says it will hold an extraordinary session this week to discuss the worsening situation in the Syrian city of Aleppo.

The UN-backed council, following a request by Britain on behalf of the U.S., Saudi Arabia, Turkey, France, Germany and others, will hold the special session on Friday.

A letter calling for the meeting also cites the “failure” of President Bashar Assad’s “regime and its allies to fulfill their human rights commitments.”

The 47-member council held the last of its regularly scheduled meetings this year in September, and it can convene special sessions if called by one-third of them.