Former Syrian Vice President Abdel Halim Khaddam has criticized the Syrian regime, accusing President Bashar Al-Assad of impoverishing and oppressing the Syrian people, just days before a referendum for Assad’s second term. In an interview with Lebanese Future TV, owned by the family of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, who was assassinated in February 2005, Khaddam stated, “We want a democratic system… Bashar has instilled fear and poverty among the Syrian people.” He also criticized the Assad family for consolidating all powers.
Khaddam, who founded the National Salvation Front in exile in 2006, which includes Syrian opposition groups, particularly the Muslim Brotherhood, made these remarks ahead of the upcoming referendum in Syria on May 27, which aims to secure a new seven-year term for President Bashar al-Assad. He called upon Alawites (the sect to which the Assad family belongs), Baathists (the ruling party), and members of the army to take responsibility for saving the country.
Khaddam highlighted the unprecedented levels of corruption under the current regime, surpassing what was seen during the late President Hafez Al-Assad’s era. He is considered one of the prominent figures of the old guard in Syria, having resigned in June 2005 after criticizing Damascus’s foreign policy. In May 2005, the Syrian judiciary issued an arrest warrant against him, and it was circulated by Interpol following accusations of corruption and treason by the Syrian People’s Assembly.
