Washington, Rajab 8, 1433, May 29, 2012, SPA - The weekend massacre in Syria was “horrific” and the international community should use diplomatic and economic pressure to end the violence in the country, the top U.S. military officer said Monday. “The events in Syria over the weekend are just horrific, atrocious really,” Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey told CBS News. Dempsey urged for international pressure to mount on President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime, following the massacre of 108 civilians in Houla, which drew condemnation from the United Nations Security Council on Sunday. “I think that diplomatic pressure should always precede any discussions about military options, " Dempsey said. “Of course we always have to provide military options, and they should be considered,” Dempsey also told CNN Monday. Still, he stressed that the international community should use economic and diplomatic measures before to try to move Assad to “make the right decision.” --SPA 11:46 LOCAL TIME 08:46 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/1002841