The former deputy to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Abdel-Halim Khaddam, called on refugees to come to France and urged the international community to intervene militarily in Syria to stop the “massacres” committed by the “war machine” belonging to President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Khaddam, 79, said at a press conference in Paris, “The Syrian people will not stand idly by in the face of violence; violence will drive them to take up arms to defend themselves.”
The former Syrian official, who defected from the regime in 2005 and has been living in France since then, added, “We are not calling on anyone to take up arms (…) That’s why we are calling for international military intervention, similar to what happened in Libya.”
He considered that the events in the country had driven President Bashar al-Assad “mad,” predicting a “fate similar to that of Muammar Gaddafi,” the former Libyan leader who was killed in captivity on October 20th last year.
Khaddam participated in a founding meeting of the “National Authority for Supporting the Syrian Revolution” in Paris on Saturday and Sunday, which aims to unify the “fragmented” Syrian opposition, according to its temporary executive chairman, Talal Al-Qarqawi.
The former Syrian vice president, who emphasized that his responsibilities in power were limited to international politics, called on Arab countries to “assume their responsibilities in helping their brothers in Syria.”
He added, “The United Nations and foreign governments must now take serious action to stop the Syrian war machine.”
Khaddam accused Russia and China, which have used their veto power in the Security Council to prevent specific actions against Bashar al-Assad’s regime, of “succumbing to Iranian pressure,” which has significant interests in both countries.
He said, “But I believe that with the regime’s instability, their position will change now.”
