At least 69 people were killed in southern Syria on Monday amidst growing international pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to resign. For the first time, King Abdullah II of Jordan has called on Assad to step down. The Jordanian king made the comment in an interview with the BBC.

King Abdullah II: “I would believe, if I were in his shoes, I would step down. However, it’s not — if I was in his position, I would — if it was me, I would step down and make sure whoever comes behind me has the ability to change the status quo that we’re seeing. And again, I don’t think the system allows for that. So if Bashar has the interest of his country, he would step down, but he would also create an ability to reach out and start a new phase of Syrian political life.”

White House spokesperson Josh Earnest repeated the administration’s call for Assad to resign.

Josh Earnest: “I will say that we obviously applaud the decision that was reached or that was announced by the Arab League. It’s clear that the Assad regime is continuing — is continuing to be isolated, that the political pressure on them is building. It is clear what the administration — what the Obama administration’s posture is on this, which is that President Assad has lost his legitimacy to rule and should go.”

Meanwhile, Iraq is defending its decision to abstain from the recent Arab League vote to suspend Syria’s membership.

Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq’s foreign minister: “This (Iraq’s stand) does not mean that we support this or that side, or we support the killing of innocent people, or we do not support freedom and free will for the Syrian people to choose the regime that they want, but there are also regional and international considerations. Iraq’s position is not like a state in North Africa or in the Gulf. Syria is a close neighbor, and what happens in it will affect us. We actually showed reservations on this decision.”