In response to some news agencies reporting the issuance of a decision by the investigating judge in Damascus accusing Mr. Abdulhaleem Khaddam, the former Vice President of the Syrian Arab Republic, of committing espionage crimes against a foreign state to attack Syria and other charges, the media office of Mr. Abdulhaleem Khaddam stated the following:
- Mr. Abdulhaleem Khaddam is not surprised by such a decision from the investigating judge, especially since the Syrian judiciary has become a tool of the regime for repression and exercising tyranny. It is noteworthy that the decision did not specify the country with which he allegedly engaged in espionage.
- The one who should be prosecuted, and will be prosecuted by the people soon, is the Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, who committed the following crimes amounting to high treason:a. Tyranny in ruling the country, suppressing freedoms, practicing corruption, impoverishing the people, and dismantling national unity, weakening the state, and depriving it of the ability to protect its land, skies, and coasts.
b. Weakening the armed forces through flaws in their structure, profession, morale, and equipment, rendering them unable to fulfill their national duties.
c. Instructing the leaders of the air force and air defense not to engage Israeli and non-Israeli military aircraft, making Syrian airspace a playground for Israeli airstrikes whenever and wherever they want. The aggression on the Deir ez-Zor region was not the first, but Bashar al-Assad always aimed to deceive the citizens so they wouldn’t see the extent of the significant damage he caused to the state’s structure and the country’s reality.
d. Dismissing a large number of pilots and aeronautical engineers for reasons unrelated to work duties.
e. Involvement in murder and bombing crimes in Lebanon, causing major harm to Syrian interests and fraternal relations between the two brotherly peoples, in addition to crimes committed against innocent citizens in Iraq.
f. Terrorism was one of the tools of the ruling regime. The recent explosion in the Muslimiya area in Aleppo two months ago was not due to heat but was the result of a hidden plot by Bashar al-Assad, falsely claiming that the explosion, which occurred at 5 a.m., was due to heat. Some news agencies hinted at an airstrike targeting the site.
g. Weakening Syria is part of Bashar al-Assad’s policy and is part of a plan to gain Israel’s support for his regime. Israeli Prime Minister Olmert clarified the nature of the relationship between him and the Israelis, expressing respect for President al-Assad and his policies.
The Syrian people will soon hold accountable the ruling clique that seized their freedoms, violated their dignity, increased their suffering, and undermined the boundaries of their national security.
