West criticizes Assad for announcing elections amid surging violence

Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's decision to hold presidential elections amid surging violence in the country has invoked criticism from the West.

According to the BBC, the US has dismissed the Syrian plan to hold a presidential election on 3 June as a "parody of democracy".

UN chief Ban Ki-moon also condemned the plan while raising concerns that the election could hamper efforts to reach an amicable deal that would put an end to the three year old civil war that has witnessed 150,000 deaths so far.

The UN envoy for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, diplomatically said that, if it went ahead, the opposition will probably not be interested in talking to the government.

As Assad is expected to seek a third seven-year term following elections, the US, EU and UN have jointly condemned the planned vote.

State department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that calling for a de-facto referendum rings especially hollow now as the regime continues to massacre the very electorate it purports to represent.

Meanwhile, a new law has been formulated by the government for candidates hoping to contest elections, which says that a person must have lived in Syria for at least 10 years to be able to seek candidature.