Unsettling: Assad Gives Rare Interview as Syria Begins Large-Scale Military Exercises
- Posted on July 8, 2012 at 5:49pm by
Erica Ritz
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(Photo: AP)
(The Blaze/AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad said in an interview broadcast Sunday that he is not afraid of meeting the same fate as the deposed and disgraced leaders of Libya and Egypt, because he thinks he has nothing in common with them.
In one of his rare interviews with Western media since the deadly uprising in Syria erupted last year, Assad brushed off a question about whether he feared for his family, including his wife and three children.
“It’s a completely different situation,” he told German broadcaster ARD. “What’s happening in Egypt is different from what is happening in Syria … You cannot compare.”
(Related: Shocking Report Exposes Syria’s 27 Torture Centers)
Regarding Libya, he continued: “Describing what happened to al Gadhafi, this is savage, this is crime.”
The 16 months of upheaval in Syria, spurred by the Arab Spring’s pro-democracy movements across the Middle East, have left well over 14,000 people dead, according to activists. They accuse the autocratic ruler of crushing legitimate protests seeking reforms by waging a war against his own people.
(Photo: AP)
But in the interview, conducted in English, the 46-year-old dictator who has ruled Syria since taking over from his father in 2000 accused the U.S. of fueling the uprising, saying that Washington ultimately bears responsibility for the deaths of innocent civilians in the Middle Eastern nation.
The U.S. is partnering with those “terrorists … with weapons, money or public and political support at the United Nations,” Assad said. “They offer the umbrella and political support to those gangs to … destabilize Syria.”
Assad rejected any responsibility of his security forces for the violence, claiming that “supporters of the government, the victims from the security and the army” far outnumber those among civilians.
Instead, he told ARD that an opposition made up of terrorists, gangs, “a mixture, an amalgam of Al Qaida (and) other extremists” is responsible for the violence.
When asked directly about the killing of more than 100 civilians in the Syrian village of Houla in May, he blamed it on gangs who “came in hundreds from outside the city.”
It should be noted that just because Assad has not given many interviews to Western media outlets, does not mean he is oblivious to our perception of current events. In calling his opposition “terrorists,” he may be trying to win U.S. support for his cause, despite his atrocious human rights record and staunch alliance with Iran.
(Photo: AP)
Assad proceeded to say that a “majority of the people ask for reforms, political reforms (but) not freedom,” asserting that he still has the support of the majority of Syrians.
“The president shouldn’t run away from challenge, and we have a national challenge now in Syria,” he explained.
While Assad said he was ready for political dialogue with the opposition, he left no doubt that he would fight the rebel forces.
“But as long as you have terrorism and as long as the dialogue didn’t work, you have to fight the terrorism. You cannot keep just making dialogue while they are killing your people and your army,” he declared.
The main obstacles to a peaceful solution to the conflict are the nations supporting the opposition, namely Saudi Arabia and Qatar who send armaments, Turkey which helps with logistics and smuggling across the border and, finally, U.S. political support, he said.
The interview, the third Assad has given to a Western news organization since last year, was conducted Thursday in a government guest house in Damascus and recorded by Syria’s state television, according to ARD.
Watch the unsettling segment, below:
The interview for ARD’s foreign policy program Weltspiegel was conducted by Juergen Todenhoefer, a former media executive and lawmaker for Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative party. He has published a number of books and essays on Islam, the war against terror in the years since the Sept. 11 attacks, and on Iraq and Afghanistan.
When Todenhoefer asked Assad how Syria would react to a military intervention, the Syrian leader vowed to stand up to the attackers.
“Whether you’re prepared or not, you’ve got to defend your country, but you have to be prepared,” he said.
In a show of force, Syria began large-scale military exercises Sunday to simulate defending the country against outside “aggression.”
Some in Syria’s fractured opposition have appealed to the West for foreign forces to step in to stop the bloodshed, but Western nations are reluctant to intervene in Syria in part because unlike the military intervention that helped bring down Gadhafi in Libya, the Syrian conflict has the potential to quickly escalate.
(Photo: AP/SANA)
Damascus has a web of allegiances to powerful forces including Shiite powerhouse Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, and there are concerns that a military campaign could pull them into a wider conflagration.
Meanwhile, Syria’s other main partner, Russia, has consistently prevented the U.N. Security Council from adopting tougher measures.
Iran said over the weekend that it has a plan to block the Strait of Hormuz– through which a fifth of the world’s oil supply flows– if threatened. It is unclear how this web of alliances could play out internationally, but it is clear that neither Syria nor Iran show signs of backing down in the near future.
This post has been updated.
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LMW
Posted on July 9, 2012 at 6:30pmI do not agree with President Assad and his policies but I like Muslim hard liners even more. Syria is a sovereign Country and we do not have any business trying to finance or help with the overthrow of Syria. We now have Muslim combatants coming in from other countries to take over his country and we too are going to send in troops to help overthrow him? We cry that he is doing what is necessary to protect his country. I wish he would offer to make peace with Israel and then watch the fun as Israel sends troops to help him throw out the invaders. Remember that between Israel and Syria they have enough Nukes to make a sand lot of Egypt, Iran and anybody else who tries to make war on them including us. We need to get our butts out of the middle east and let them do what ever they wish. The excuse that they wish Democracy is BS as we see by Egypt how we helped the Muslims hard liners take over and take away what ever freedoms they did have. The Muslim Traitor Obama and Hillery Clinton should be sent there along with all of their ilk as war criminals. I’m sorry for the service members who are being commited to this travisty and pray for their lives as we once again send our troops into a bad war. I thank them for their service and hope that someday Obama and the rest get their just rewards. I think stoning would be rather nice. I would pay to watch that.
Report Post »kalli
Posted on July 9, 2012 at 1:19amAfter what obama and hillary brought to power in Libya and Egypt using American resources, Assad may be telling the truth in that the US is behind the uprising in Syria in trying to oust him so the brotherhood can gain power in the ME. Any way you look at it, it’s evil at work in both countries.
Report Post »KevINtampa
Posted on July 9, 2012 at 2:00amDoes anyone really believe that nation after nation in the MidEast would just keel over and flip like this without foreign instigation?
It’s Central America all over again. Now who are the players behind it? Well, I have a pretty good idea we haven’t had our thumbs up our butts the last 25 years in that region.
Watch a couple of clips from Yuri Bezmenov and you will see exactly what’s been done to these nations. This is the truth. Bezmenov wasn’t some whack job, he’s the closest thing to understanding leftist psychological warfare the world has known to date.
The video is 5 minutes long and it is the technique that was used to turn the middle east into the chaotic powder keg that it is. As soon as we realized this was happening there, we started a war in Iraq, because we were behind the 8 ball. There’s a long video, two of them, one in front of a class because he thought it important to be taught, and the full interview from the clip below.
Again, I can not stress enough, you need to understand fabric of what he warned us about. Right now, it’s the middle east that this has been done to, and if we don’t sharpen up real quick, it’ll be us next.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlpODYhnPEo
Report Post »KevINtampa
Posted on July 9, 2012 at 2:16amThe classroom video that explains what has happened in the Middle East. Understand the fabric to the nearest degree of what Yuri Bezmenov (Thomas Schuman) teaches here like your Liberty depends on it.
Please watch and understand. George Soros doesn’t want you to understand this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gnpCqsXE8g&feature=related
Report Post »brian8793
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 10:49pmHows about we mind our own DANG business!
Report Post »riseandshine
Posted on July 9, 2012 at 12:42amToo late for that….we’re in it up to our necks. There will be regime change. It’s absolutely criminal…and evil.
Report Post »zoro51
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 9:34pmDOWN SHALL YOU MURDERING MUSLUMS GO you n iran are headed for a slamming head event.. as your 2 nations are ripped fomr its borders ONE nation shall arise in its place.. will the HATE n killings stop there???? as long as you remain MURDERING MUSLUMS that you are.. and realize youre in a MAN MADE CULT OF HATE N DEATH youll NEVER learn nor grow but further decline…. you go against isreal n see how many seconds you exist… RAKA… thou FOOL…. already HELL not heaven awaits you wiht baited breth you chose to worship a false diety a STONE IDOL called allah there IS no allah only yeshuwah… learn BUT pig headed n stubbonr u must see death before u see light so be it.. soon U n iran shall BUMP heads. as the true god spoke it.. too late NO where to run or hide this day HELL welcomes you into its collective for all eternity… FLEA NOW…. doomsday is upon you syria / iran………
Report Post »tbeachhead
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 7:39pmOh wait…And let me see if I can remember history. Saddam Hussein’s weapons were all transported where? To whose regime? Who wants to get their hands on them now? Does anybody remember convoys from Iraq to Damacus?
Report Post »JACKTHETOAD
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 8:13pmBingo. Chemmers and bios, and they‘re just waitin’ to use ‘em on us.
Report Post »tbeachhead
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 7:36pmLets see if I get this straight: You actually believe that the opposition is a “pro-democracy” movement? That Syria is not facing a takeover by the Muslim Brotherhood; it’s actually a “democratic movement” unlike the ersatz democracy being imposed by the dictatorial Brotherhood in Libya, Egypt and Tunisia? Who are you kidding? And who, who knows the history of Syria, is surprised that Damascus is strong enough to stand up to the threat using the same measures that the Brotherhood itself has always used, on the same scale.
There is nothing pretty here…look what Syriad did to Beirut, and all of Lebanon. But lets face it, the alternative to Assad is a Caliphate in place.
Report Post »heavyduty
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 7:09pmIf ASSAADDD ain’t afraid then why is he hiding? Cowards hide while the war is raging. Funny I haven’t seen him running around out there with a weapon shouting ALLAAAAAAHHHHH AKKKKKBBBBAARRR.
Report Post »Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:46pmComrade Obama is working with the extremists and radicals of Islam to bring down Assad, who I will admit is no golden child or white lilied wonderman in of himself. The fact is, which will we as the people of the nation honestly tolerate: The devil we have before us, or the devil in the White House who is seeking to aid those who wish the destruction of America and Israel, to restore their Caliphate of olden days and then allow them to turn on our country without mercy.
This is a choice of two evils before us, and in my oppinion, the worst of them sits in the White House right now. Obama wants his war to ensure his reelection; not caring one way or anothr for the people of this nation, and the price we shall pay for his insanity.
Report Post »KidCharlemagne
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:44pm“Instead, he told ARD that an opposition made up of terrorists, gangs, “a mixture, an amalgam of Al Qaida (and) other extremists” is responsible for the violence.”
========================================================
Iraq says that Al-Qaeda is POURING into Syria right now:
——————————————————–
“Al-Qaida insurgents entering Syria: Iraq
By: Staff Writer
Posted: 07/6/2012 1:00 AM
BEIRUT — Iraq said Thursday al-Qaida insurgents are leaving the country to carry out attacks in Syria, as the Syrian conflict inflames an already volatile region.
Extremists, taking advantage of the chaos and violence gripping Syria, have reportedly been making inroads as the 16-month-old uprising against President Bashar Assad grinds on. The head of the Syrian UN observer mission said Thursday violence in the country had reached “unprecedented levels.”
Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zeba-ri said authorities are worried extremists could gain a foothold in Syria, posing a new threat to regional stability.
“We have solid information and intelligence that members of al-Qaida’s terrorist network have gone to Syria,” he said. He didn’t provide details.
In February, al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri called on Muslims from Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey to join the Syrian uprising, which began in March 2011 with mass protests inspired by the Arab Spring”
Report Post »http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/world/al-qaida–insurgents-entering–syria-
lukerw
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 7:06pmMost of Islam is Sunni Muslim, as is the Syrian Government… Lebenon, Iraq, & Iran are Shia Muslims, as are the Rebels in Syria.
This is a Civil War… based upon Sects… as supported by National Interests of Muslim Nations; DO NOT TAKE SIDES!
Report Post »jakartaman
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:36pmAssad is history
Report Post »He will go down relatively hard but down he will go!
I think this could be a two for.
US and Israel take out Iran’s nuclear capability and syria at the same time.
Russia and china will do nothing!
freeberty
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:35pm@inthedark
Libya had oil.
Report Post »historyguy48
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:28pmComrade, the worst thing is that he is probably correct. Dear Leader is probably working to help unseat him so yet another necessary peg for the Islamic Caliphate can fall into place.
Report Post »But don‘t worry about it because Dear Leader knows what he is doing so you just don’t have a thing to worry about. Go back to your reality tv, your sports contests, and don’t worry your poor head about the way the world is being changed around us.
And when it’s all over, the plan is completed, and you are given the choice to submit or die, just remember that today the Cleveland Indians lost to the Tampa Devil Rays by a score of 7 to 6 so all is right in the world.
Leadthemtothelight
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:23pmWhy did our government get involved in Libya but Syria is untouchable? Why do we have Russian planes all but entering our air space and the powers that be are not concerned. I know that the POTUS (gag) cannot get far from the campaign trail and the executive orders he keeps drafting must keep him busy. I cannot help but wonder ummmm WTF IS GOING ON?
Report Post »riseandshine
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:46pmOur government’s been involved in Syria from the beginning of all the turmoil there.
Report Post »Walkabout
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:53pmDebka reported that if Syria falls then Russia will sell more advanced arms like the S300 missile system to Iran.
Iran has sent personnel to train with these systems now.
Iran & Russia will not take this lying down.
Part of the reason we have not invaded Iran is because they have plausible deniability in their terrorist attacks against us (went thru proxies like Hezbollah).
Another part is they have 3 times the population of Iraq (or had).
Another one is they have the backing of the Soviet Union & china & sit on their borders unlike Iraq which was a bit further away.
Another is that Iran could & would unleash many many terrorists. They have extensive ties in Mexico, Venezuela & the Muslim Triangle area of Argentina Paraguay & Brasil.
It is not all about the nuke that they DON’T YET HAVE SOYBOMB. It is about how many things like assymmetric warfare like terrorism. Iran was many terrorists under its wings in the Americas. Call your representative or senator & see how cagey the staff gets when you talk about the Muslim triangle or the Iran Venezuela connection.
Report Post »Walkabout
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:57pmCovertly this time unlike Libya. Plausible deniability for the campaign trail if things go south.
Just plausible deniabilty all the way around.
Report Post »Paul
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 7:00pm“riseandshine
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:46pm
Our government’s been involved in Syria from the beginning of all the turmoil there.
Absolutely
Report Post »