Abdel Halim Khaddam, former Syrian Vice President who defected from the ruling regime in Damascus, advised President Bashar al-Assad to appear before the international investigation committee on the assassination of the late President Rafik Hariri. He denied the accusations of corruption and involvement in old assassinations in Lebanon.
In an interview published yesterday by the Qatari newspaper “Al-Watan,” Khaddam stated, “I advise him to accept because his refusal may expose Syria to pressure and sanctions. If he is convinced of his innocence, why not accept it? President (Lebanese Emil) Lahoud accepted and met with the committee.” He emphasized that “invoking sovereignty is not correct, and the word sovereignty is not the most important. What is more important is that Syria does not suffer harm.”
On another note, Khaddam denied responsibility for transgressions, corruption, and assassinations in Lebanon when he was responsible for the Lebanese file. He said, “My responsibilities were political, and I had a committee, meaning I was not alone, and we had no connection to security issues.” He added, “The nature of the regime in Syria is that there is no relationship between politicians and the armed forces or security forces.”
He denied any connection between Saudi Arabia and his choice of the “Al Arabiya” channel, based in Dubai, to announce his first positions that embodied his separation from the Syrian regime. In this context, he said, “Saudi Arabia has no relation to this matter, either directly or indirectly. There was contact with Al Arabiya through its director here.” He added, “The newspaper ‘Al-Hayat’ took an interview from me but only published excerpts from it. They said they would publish the full text the next day, which did not happen. I later learned that a political directive from Saudi Arabia led to the closure of this file.”
He expressed his belief that the former Syrian Interior Minister, Ghazi Kanaan, was killed and did not commit suicide. He said in this regard, “After reading Dr. Bashar’s interview with ‘Al Arabi Week’ and his saying that Ghazi was involved in a plan with me at that time, I became convinced that he was killed.” He added, “I used to think he committed suicide, but after the interview, I now believe he was killed because someone involved in a plan, what is his punishment and how is he dealt with?”
Regarding the relationship between Hezbollah and Syria, Khaddam said, “The party’s strategy is decided by its leadership and not Damascus.” He affirmed that “Damascus helped and continues to help Hezbollah, but the party has its leadership, and the party is a friend to Damascus, certainly because it has provided a lot to it.”
