U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has criticized the Syrian government for dropping barrel bombs on the northern city of Aleppo.
Activists say those attacks have killed dozens of people in the past week in the city that has seen some of the worst fighting between Syrian forces and rebels opposed to President Bashar al-Assad.
In a statement Tuesday, Kerry said the bombings are the Assad administration's "latest barbaric act," and that the government is focused on inflicting more destruction on the country.
He said the opposition and the international community are trying to find an end to the fighting, while the government's actions "undermined hope" for successful peace talks in Geneva.
The first round of negotiations ended last week with little progress, but Mr. Ban and mediator Lakhdar Brahimi expect delegates from the government and opposition to resume meeting February 10.