The United States and European Union are calling for new sanctions on Syria similar to those used against the Gaddafi regime ahead of the NATO attack on Libya. At an international “Friends of Syria” gathering in Paris, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton invoked the threat of Chapter 7 under the U.N. Charter, which ranges from economic embargoes to military force. The news come as the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has apparently suffered its highest-level defection to date. On Thursday, opposition activists said Syrian General Manaf Tlas, a member of Assad’s inner circle, had fled to Turkey, reportedly over his anger at the Syrian government’s killing of civilians.