Syrian opposition leaders living in exile announced the establishment of a united front on Friday aimed at forming a transitional government to achieve “regime change” from President Bashar al-Assad to a democratic government.
Abdel Halim Khaddam, the former vice president who defected from Assad last year after working with his late father, President Hafez al-Assad, stated in a press conference that all factions of the Syrian opposition and activists have reached the conclusion that the Syrian regime must be changed.
Khaddam added that Assad will face the fate of the Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu in 1989 within the coming months. Drawing from ongoing negotiations that lasted late into the night, Khaddam suggested a popular uprising is imminent to overthrow Assad.
He noted that widespread poverty and rampant corruption, along with strict security measures and lack of freedom of expression, have created a situation similar to the one that led to the uprising in Romania. Khaddam likened the situation in Syria to the events that preceded the fall of Ceaușescu.
Khaddam emphasized that a significant portion of reformist members within the Ba’ath Party, which he was a former senior member of, support his actions and will be active partners in changing the regime.
He also revealed that the Assad regime is effectively run for the benefit of a small, close-knit family circle, with policy decisions being made in favor of this family’s interests.
Khaddam stated that the young president, who inherited power when his father Hafez al-Assad died in 2000, prioritizes decisions that serve this family’s interests. He pointed out that these interests have driven Syrian policy decisions.
Opposition leaders are relying on the United Nations’ investigation into the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri to deliver a decisive blow to Assad.
Khaddam asserted that the regime is primarily led by the president himself, and as such, if the leader falls, the entire regime will collapse.
In response to a question about when he expects a rebellion to erupt, Khaddam expressed confidence that it will happen this year, within a few months, adding that President Bashar al-Assad is making many mistakes and digging his own grave.
Khaddam’s comments followed a two-day meeting of opposition groups in Brussels, which included Muslim Brotherhood, liberal, communist, and Kurdish factions. They jointly drafted a declaration outlining a six-month transitional period after Assad.
However, it’s not yet clear the level of popular support the united opposition front in Syria, which is under tight control, might garner, and the sanctions imposed on the opposition could be substantial.
Bashar al-Assad is facing intense international pressure following the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri last year, which led to massive protests in Lebanon and the withdrawal of Syrian forces from the country.
Fourteen opposition politicians living in exile, all men, appeared on a joint press conference platform, with Khaddam and Ali Sadr al-Din al-Bayanouni, the general guide of the Muslim Brotherhood, at the center.
Bayanouni told Reuters that Assad still enjoys international diplomatic and political protection from the West, urging the United States and Europe to boycott the Syrian government to hasten its downfall.
Hossam al-Deri, leader of the Syrian National Liberal Party based in Washington, stated, “This is the first time in history that all opposition movements from inside and outside Syria have sat at one table and agreed on a common plan.” Khaddam, who resides in France, chose to hold the meeting in Belgium because French law requires him, as a political refugee, to refrain from making statements against foreign governments.
He added that he has many supporters within the ruling Ba’ath Party and the military. He told Reuters, “They will be active partners in changing the regime, and there will be no massacres.” Despite international pressure and Lebanese demonstrations, there have been no significant signs of domestic protests in Syria, where security forces maintain control.
Earlier this week, the United Nations announced that Assad and his deputy had agreed for the first time to speak to its investigative committee next month.
Bayanouni told Reuters that the opposition has agreed on a civil constitution and that his movement, which considers itself moderate and is closely aligned with Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party, will not seek to impose Islamic Sharia law in Syria.
The United States and France lead the countries exerting international pressure on Syria regarding the Hariri case.
However, some diplomats say that Washington and Paris may be reluctant to risk causing turmoil in Damascus at a time when neighboring Iraq is experiencing escalating sectarian conflict and after the victory of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in elections in Palestinian territories.
Khaddam and Bayanouni are an unlikely pair, and some other opposition politicians say that their alliance highlights the opposition’s seriousness in uniting to topple Assad, as it lacks significant popular support.
Khaddam was the foreign minister in 1982 when Syrian security forces crushed an Islamic uprising in Hama, killing at least 10,000 people and possibly even double that number.
The former Syrian vice president now expresses deep regret for those events, but he is careful to blame both sides for the massacre.