Last weakened will probably go down in history as the bloodiest one since the start of protest movement against the Syrian regime. BBC reports show that over the past 24 hours at least 75 persons have been killed as government troops, supported by tanks, attacked Deir Ezzor, a city in the east of the country, and the central town of Houleh, in the Homs province. Va-rious opposition groups insist on varying death tolls.
Human rights activists point to more than 1,650 peaceful residents killed in clashes with the police and army units, with tens of thousands arrested.
Interestingly, against the backdrop of these events Syrian President Bashar al-Assad claims Syria is headed for reforms. ASANA, the state news agency, quoted him as telling Lebanese Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour: “Dealing with outlaws and convicts who stage highway robbery and seal off cities and terrorize the population is a national duty.” He added that the government must protect the country and the lives of its residents.
The international community has to be credited for its critical attitude to the Syrian regime as Bashar al-Assad is being increasingly isolated. On Sunday, the Arab League called on Assad’s government to immediately stop acts of violence against protesting citizens. That same day King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia declared that his ambassador to Syria would be recalled from Damascus. Saudi television broadcast the king’s statement that referred to the situation in Sy-ria as unacceptable.
Prior to this, the UN Secretary General and the Turkish prime mi-nister joined the Arab League’s call. On Saturday, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in a phone conversation with Assad expressed his strong concern – and that of the international community – over the mounting violence and death toll in Syria in the past days.” It was the first contact between the two men since April when Assad refused to hold negotiations with the UN leader.
Meanwhile, Turkish Prime Mi-nister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu would visit Syria on Tuesday: “We have reached the end of our patience and that is why I am sending the foreign minister to Syria on Tuesday. He will have talks there during which he will convey our messages with determination… We do not consider the problems in Syria a question of foreign policy but a domestic matter.” He went on to say that the two countries share an 850-kilometer frontier and have historical, family, and cultural ties. Erdogan stressed that Turkey could not remain a bystander to the violence and warned that Ankara would act depending on what Damascus would have to say to Davutoglu.
According to Yeni Asir, Davutoglu will tell Assad that the legitimacy of the latter’s leadership is becoming more questionable with each passing day. Milliyet writes that, from the diplomatic point of view, Davutoglu’s messages precede an open call on Assad to step down. Failing to heed Ankara and other regional states, Damascus will risk losing their support. By losing Turkey’s neighborly attitude, Syria may well lose all its allies, except, perhaps, Iran.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton supported Turkish Foreign Mi-nister Davutoglu’s decision to visit Damascus shortly to voice [the international community’s. – Ed.] concern about the events in that Arab country. She described President Obama’s stand in the matter: Syria must immediately order the troops back to the barracks and release all detainees, considering that their arrests are causing concern. Hillary Clinton asked Davutoglu to once again convey this message to official Damascus and reaffirmed US support of a transition to democracy in Syria.
COMMENTARY
The Day asked Serhii DANYLOV, deputy director, Middle East Study Center, for comment on the situation in Syria, also on the possible consequences of recent statements by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and other world leaders.
“All these statements will have no effect on the Syrian regime. The Syrian ruling circles are prepared for this course of events. Assad will make no concessions because he relies on a good old method used under his father’s rule, one that proved its worth when combating the opposition and separate opponents. High-ranking officials are faced with a deadly threat. Their very lives are at stake. Besides, they are supported by Iran that, short of stimulating, fully approves the way they are acting. The sanctions enforced by the West aren’t likely to damage Syria.
“Some of Syria’s neighbors have spent decades being exposed to such sanctions, yet their regimes have kept their countries under control. Therefore, I believe Damascus is prepared for these sanctions and is not afraid of them.
“We can hear an echo of the Arab Spring in Syria. After all, its regime is in standard mode, using brutal force, stopping practically at nothing, seeing this as the only way to suppress actions aimed against the legitimate government.”
Why do you think Syrian Authorities are acting the way they are?
“There are several explanations. One is that Assad is prepared to take steps toward liberalization and a degree of softening of the regime. However, he does not have the situation under full control. He is not a full-fledged head of state whose ideas are unquestioningly accepted by the law enforcement agencies and the military, along with the entire Assad clan. We know that his father made him his successor only because his elder son was dead. Bashar al-Assad never planned to become president. He studied medicine in London and was not involved in any political games.
“The other explanation is that Assad will go through the motions of taking positive measures to quell the international community’s fears. The West has taken a consolidated stand in the Syrian crisis. Arab countries are following suit.”
Why such consolidated stand on the part of Western and Arab countries can’t affect Syria?
“Well, it can. First, [most. – Ed.] Arab countries have taken a consolidated stand in regard to the Iranian factor. Syria is acting as Iran’s closest ally. This has long been a problem in Syria’s relationships with other Arab countries. Turkey is concerned over the possibility of destabilizing the frontier; an influx of refugees is a clear and present threat. Indeed, these factors, put together, may have an impact on Assad.”
What about official Kyiv’s stand in the Syrian situation?
“The Ukrainian foreign ministry’s stand is not and nor will it be different in any respect from that of the countries whose governments want a peaceful solution to this problem and nonuse of violence against people. They will caution their citizens against visiting Syria.”
