Abdel Halim Khaddam, the former Vice President of the Syrian Arab Republic, expressed that it is entirely natural for every Syrian today to question the reasons behind the Syrian regime’s survival three years after the Syrian revolution, despite the regime’s impact on hundreds of thousands of Syrians and the displacement of ten million people.
During an interview with Monte Carlo International, he identified several reasons for Bashar al-Assad’s continued hold on power, primarily the absence of a unified political and military leadership associated with the Syrian opposition. He emphasized the need for a “comprehensive national” conference that encompasses all segments of the Syrian population, demanding the overthrow of the Syrian regime and working towards this goal without excluding anyone or centralizing decision-making. Khaddam emphasized the validity of the idea that the Syrian revolution was not initiated by a particular party, group, or individual, but rather as a result of the accumulated grievances among people over the four-decade rule of the Hafez al-Assad family.
The former Syrian vice president acknowledged the significant role played by Russia and Iran in prolonging Bashar al-Assad’s tenure in his opinion. He called upon Arab countries, particularly the Gulf countries, to support the unity of Syrians in confronting the Syrian regime. In this context, he stated, “If the regime falls in Syria, Iran will fall in Lebanon and Syria, and Palestine will weaken, as well as Bahrain and other Gulf countries.”