Abdel Halim Khaddam, the former Syrian vice president and opposition figure based in Paris, has stated that engaging in any negotiations with the current regime in Syria or even considering such negotiations would be regarded as a “national betrayal.”
In an interview with the Algerian newspaper Al-Shorouq, published on its website on Tuesday evening, Khaddam asserted, “This regime has committed acts of genocide and destruction, resulting in the deaths of over 100,000 Syrians, the destruction of 40% of Syria, and the perpetration of sectarian massacres. Any negotiations with the regime or contemplation of negotiations would be seen as a betrayal of the nation.”
He further added, “We will only engage in dialogue when we are standing on Bashar al-Assad’s grave. Dialogue with him is impossible. Bashar will be ousted. This criminal has misused the army, which was established to protect the Syrian people, and has turned it into a tool for killing Syrians.”
Khaddam also launched a scathing attack on the joint UN and Arab envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, asserting, “Brahimi is incompetent and lacks the qualifications required for this role. The Syrian opposition rejects him because he arrived to establish a dialogue with Bashar al-Assad, who has become nothing more than a murderer and a leader of gangs.”
