Ban said Thursday the fighting must end and that it is imperative to hold a peace conference in Geneva as soon as possible.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who was in New York to meet with Syrian opposition members, said there is no military solution for Syria and that leadership is needed to bring all sides to the peace table.
The United States and Russia have been struggling to organize an international peace conference on Syria to talk about a transitional government. But they are finding little common ground among the likely participants.
In Syria Thursday, a car bomb blew up in the Damascus suburb of Jaramana, killing 17 people.
Syrian rebels are fighting to overthrow authoritarian President Bashar al-Assad.
