Our great Syrian people at home and abroad,
may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon you
I am addressing you as we enter a new year.
We hope that it will be the year of salvation from injustice, tyranny and terrorism
and that people will return to their homes in their villages and town with honor and dignity,
as free as they left them.
The sacrifices that the Syrian people are making for the sake of their freedom and dignity
represent an epic of heroism and courage
that will remain a unique deed in the history of revolutions and acts of heroism.
Brothers and sisters,
Your sacrifices will result in victory, freedom and dignity; in a free and dignified homeland, God willing.
The people making these sacrifices and deeds will not succumb to despair, God willing.
During our tours in the freed territories
we met many activists of the revolution
as well as civil, revolutionary and military bodies.
We also met notables and tribal leaders.
We came out of those meetings with a lot of hope, valuable ideas and constructive suggestions
which we are working to study and activate with our colleagues in the Syrian Opposition Coalition.
The living conditions in the freed north are undoubtedly dire and harsh
as is the case everywhere in Syria.
Despite the efforts being made by the Syrian Interim Government and active organizations,
the size of the needs exceeds the size of resources, especially in this harsh winter and its additional needs.
Therefore, we have contacted the United Nations, international organizations and, and active friendly and sisterly states in order to secure the required needs and the necessary relief for our people.
At the same time, we emphasize that our cause is a political one, not just a relief one.
Absent the criminality of the regime and its enablers, these crises and challenges would not exist, and we would not see a single tent in our country.
We feel great pain as we see our people in the regime-held areas
suffering living conditions that are even more miserable and dire.
They can hardly find sustenance, warmth, or the necessities of daily life.
The international relief aid that is being sent to them is
mostly stolen, or lost in the regime’s network of massive corruption.
The Assad regime has brought Syria to the rock bottom of countries in terms of poverty, freedoms and security.
Syria became one of the most dangerous areas in the world.
Our great Syrian people,
There will be no decent life under this regime which is only good at killing, murder, arrest and humiliation.
Despite the ultimate humiliation that the regime is enduring at the hands of the Israeli occupation which routinely bombs our country
due to the regime’s treason and complicity, and its opening of the country to Iranian militias to wreak havoc and terrorism, it insists on showing utmost hubris and insolence against the Syrian people, thus compensating for its inferiority complex, deep sense of humiliation, and treachery.
We are diligently working for a better future for the great Syria
a motherland for all its sons and daughters, from all backgrounds and affiliations,
Syria that is governed by the rule of law, not by security and intelligence branches,
Syria which offers equal opportunities for all, according to aptitude and competence, not according to corruption and favoritism.
Syria whose resources are equally distributed among its citizens
rather than being stolen by the regime and its symbols
leaving the rest of the people to live on crumbs,
Syria that will be for its sons and daughters, a state that will not look like the one which is controlled by this murderous regime.
Brothers and sisters,
First and foremost, the Assad regime is our problem.
We are the ones who will bring it down.
We are the ones who will save Syria from it.
We are the ones who will build the new Syria.
I call on you all to work together to achieve these goals.
Syria needs every initiative, opinion, and constructive action from its people.
We call upon everyone, and we extend our hands to everyone; for the sake of great Syria,
for its fallen heroes,
for its detainees,
for its women and children,
and for its youth and its future.
I reiterate that we in the SOC are working according to four main principles:
First is the principle of unity, which expresses the building of internal cohesion among the forces of the revolution,
the building of bridges between the political, military, civil and revolutionary institutions of the revolution,
and between these and the Syrian people at home and abroad
with the aim of unifying visions and efforts for the future and freedom of Syria.
Second is the principle of re-centralizing the blessed Syrian revolution,
through our commitment to the values ​​and ideals for which our people came out in this great revolution.
Third is the principle of restoration of the initiative.
It’s the Syrian people who began the revolution and who have brought it thus far.
It’s the Syrian people who will take it to victory.
Our people have paid a heavy price for their freedom and dignity.
They started the revolution armed with nothing but determination, strong will, and love for dignity and freedom.
They are still on their path, regardless of who stood with us or those who let us down.
Fourth is the principle of openness to all components of Syrian society and political groupings
in order to strengthen cooperation and coordination
and the true partnership
and unifying efforts to achieve the demands of the Syrian people of getting rid of dictatorship and tyranny,
and building a state of freedom, democracy and dignity.
At the international level, the international community is required to assume its responsibilities with regard to Syria and its people, by taking a decisive position towards the murderous Assad regime.
The regime has violated all international norms and laws, and committed all types of atrocities against the Syrian people,
but also the region and beyond, when it made its areas a major narco-state.
Hardly a day passes without news of new shipments of narcotics being smuggled to the countries of the region and beyond,
let alone the regime’s organic relations with terrorist organizations and militias that now control important areas of Syria,
in addition to bringing more than 70 sectarian militias that are roving the country with Iranian funding and leadership.
There is no future for Syria without the downfall of this murderous regime
and bringing all its symbols and criminals to trial.
Deluded are those who think that the Syrian people will accept to return to live under the rule of security branches, arbitrary arrests and death under torture.
It is a grave mistake and total shame for anyone to equate the great Syria with a criminal, servile regime that killed and displaced millions.
Whoever demands the return of Syria to the Arab League must realize that this regime cannot represent Syria
as it has been practicing murder and crimes against its people for more than a decade,
in addition to its complete dependence on the malign Iranian project.
Here we must renew our thanks and appreciation to all the brothers and friends who expressed their firm positions rejecting the rehabilitation of the Assad regime
and to all the true friends of the Syrian people,
who have had firm positions during the past ten years towards the Assad regime and its supporters,
and their clear, explicit commitment to supporting the legitimate rights and aspirations of the Syrian people.
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Our great Syrian people,
our acceptance of engaging in the different political tracks
depends on serving the interests of the Syrian people,
ridding them of the murderous regime, and achieving political transition in accordance with UN resolutions.
Any move or plan that does not serve these goals will be thoroughly rejected.
Hence, the United Nations is required to provide a specific timetable for the tracks of the political process laid out in UN Resolution 2254,
including the formation of a transitional governing body with full powers and working to form it in parallel
as a prelude to a full political transition in Syria.
Our people cannot wait indefinitely.
It is unacceptable that the international community continues to manage the Syrian crisis with such lukewarm attitude,
and through passive approaches that fail to address the suffering of our people in the IDP camps
and in the regime-held areas
and of the hundreds of thousands of detainees, kidnapped and forcibly disappeared persons
who are suffering extremely dire conditions,
and millions of displaced persons and refugees, whose suffering must be brought to an end, and their safe and dignified return to their homeland and homes must be ensured.
This gangster regime will eventually go.
What we are witnessing today is undoubtedly painful travails
but will be followed by the birth of a new Syria that every Syrian dreams of, a Syria of freedom, dignity and prosperity.
Let us all rise to the challenge and responsibility for the sake of our people and the future of our children.
Happy new year!
We wish all the Syrian people, with their Arabs, Kurds, and Turkomen, Syriacs, and all the components and sects that are dear to us a happy new year.
Thank you!
