Syrian Vice President Abdul Halim Khaddam launched a series of explosive statements directed towards the ruling regime in Damascus, revealing some secrets about the Syrian decision-making process regarding the extension of Lebanese President Emile Lahoud’s term. Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice commented on the diplomatic moves between Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and France regarding Syria and Lebanon. In a notable development, Abdul Halim Khaddam was reported to have been seeking to overthrow the government of President Bashar al-Assad through a popular uprising.
Khaddam informed the newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat from his residence in Paris that he was mobilizing Syrian opposition parties to create the appropriate environment to topple the Syrian regime by inciting the Syrian people.
“Khaddam on a French Channel
And in less than a week from his appearance on ‘Al-Arabiya’ satellite channel in Dubai, Khaddam appeared on the screen of the French public channel ‘France 3’. In response to a question about the future of President Bashar al-Assad, he said that he ‘must leave… to his home… to prison… the important thing is to save Syria from this regime.’ He added that ‘those behind the recent assassinations in Lebanon will continue killing because their goal is to spread chaos in this country.’ He noted that his life is now ‘in danger,’ but he is ‘not afraid. ”
“In the Associated Press”
The Associated Press agency conducted a call from Beirut with Khaddam at his residence in Paris. They asked him if he supports a change of regime in Syria, to which he answered: “Yes,” but he added that he will not lead efforts to overthrow Assad. He emphasized that this matter is “the least of my concerns; what matters to me is that the Syrian people regain their freedom and their ability to determine their own fate.” He believed that the “mistakes” of Assad have weakened the Syrian regime irreparably, stating that it “can no longer repair itself and has become like a car from the year 1916… I am convinced that the regime has committed major mistakes against Syria and Lebanon, and it must take responsibility before the Syrian people. I believe there is no chance for the regime to continue in the long term.” He reiterated the accusation that Assad is personally responsible through his decisions and actions for isolating Syria and that he “weakened the regime itself due to his misguided vision and mistakes on both the domestic and international fronts… President Bashar al-Assad made grave decisions, unilaterally, against our advice,” including the extension of Lebanese President Emile Lahoud’s term. He denied that he decided to defect from the regime with encouragement from Saudi Arabia or any other country.
“Al-Sharq Al-Awsat “
Former deputy to Syrian President Abdel Halim Khaddam, who recently announced his defection from the Syrian regime, affirmed in an interview with the newspaper “Al-Sharq Al-Awsat,” published today, that he is working to “mature the conditions” in order for the Syrians to “take to the streets” and overthrow the regime. Khaddam said in response to a question, “The Syrian people will be the ones to bring down the regime… I am not seeking change through a military coup… but I am working to mature the conditions for the Syrians to take to the streets and take the necessary steps to overthrow the regime, and this matter is progressing seriously.” He added, “There is a growing movement in the country. The opposition is rapidly growing… The problem was that there was no influential figure who could stand against the regime.”
He continued, “The Syrian opposition knows my positions, and I was in contact with them even on the day I was in Syria. The interview increased the opposition’s confidence in itself, and it will unite with all its factions, and I am striving for that.”
“… and ‘Al-Hayat”
In another conversation with the newspaper “Al-Hayat,” which will be published in full tomorrow (refer to the newspaper archives), Khaddam confirmed that President Bashar al-Assad said in one of the meetings of the Ba’ath Party that “Rafik Hariri cooked up Resolution 1559 with President Jacques Chirac, and that Hariri is conspiring against Syria.”
He recounted that before the issuance of Resolution 1559, a day before, President Assad asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Farouk al-Sharaa, to contact his Spanish counterpart, Miguel Angel Moratinos, and request Spain’s assistance along with Western countries to prevent the issuance of this resolution. He informed him that Syria was prepared to abandon Lebanese President Emile Lahoud. Khaddam mentioned that Moratinos presented the matter to the Prime Minister of Spain, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, who asked him to inform his Syrian counterpart that he wanted to speak to Assad directly, and that happened. Assad asked Zapatero to intervene and informed him of his readiness to abandon Lahoud if Western countries abandoned the Security Council resolution that was about to be issued.
Khaddam added that Zapatero might have contacted French President Jacques Chirac, German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and possibly even the United States. The West agreed not to hold a Security Council session if Syria abandoned the extension for Lahoud.
Khaddam mentioned that Moratinos contacted al-Sharaa to inform him of the success of the endeavor and that the Security Council would not convene. However, President of the Lebanese Parliament, Nabih Berri, would announce the cancellation of the parliamentary session scheduled to amend the constitution. Al-Sharaa responded, “You speak to Mr. Berri.” Moratinos was surprised by this response and answered, “You initiated and asked for our assistance, and we succeeded in persuading other countries, so you should contact Berri.” Al-Sharaa then replied, “You contact him.” Indeed, the Spanish Foreign Minister contacted the President of the Lebanese Parliament and received the response, “We are an independent and sovereign state and are not influenced by Syrian pressures.” Resolution 1559 was subsequently issued.
