Syrian Coalition: Assad’s statements proves he is behind terrorism in Syria
Louay Safi, the spokesman for the Syrian Coalition, described Bashar al-Assad’s remarks that he has “fighters in the ranks of the opposition,” as “futile attempts aimed at undermining trust between the fighters who are advancing on his troops and shabiha in many Syrian cities.” Safi went on: “Assad’s comments confirms our suspicions of a link between the regime and some armed units whose practices are inconsistent with the objectives of the revolution and serve the Assad regime, which seeks to justify the killing of the Syrians in front of the international community under the pretext of fighting terrorism.” Safi described Assad’s request of the Jordanian government to help him in his fight against the Syrian people in the border city of Dara’a as…Read more
Syrian Coalition visit Child Care Centers on the International Day of People with Disability A delegation from the Syrian Coalition, headed by Ahmed Jarba and accompanied by the President of the Syrian National Council George Sabra, visited several…Read more
Assad’s Forces Unearth Corpses from the Judeidat al-Fadel Massacre The Syrian Coalition described unearthing the graves of martyrs in Judeidat al-Fadel in rural Damascus under the pretext that they are foreign fighters as “a crime…Read more
Hajj: The International Community Will Not Force Us to Sign; We Want To Free Syria from Assad Abdul Rahman Al Hajj, a member of the General Secretariat of the Syrian National Council, said that Russia “confirmed that the responsibility for the formation and leadership of the opposition delegation at Geneva 2 lies on the Syrian Coalition,” in addition to announcing their commitment to Geneva 1 Communique as the framework for negotiation in Geneva 2. Hajj stated also that “no doubt Geneva 2 will see the application of Geneva 1 Communique; there is no any illusion in this point. The Security Council resolution No. 2118 clearly states that Geneva 1 forms the basis for a political solution. The resolution was formally appended by the full text of Geneva 1 Communique and became part of the Security Council resolution itself.” Hajj said about the possibility of reaching a tangible outcome of the negotiations: “As long as the negotiating framework is clearly represented in the roadmap provided by Geneva 1, then surely it is possible to reach a solution through it. However, in order to effectively achieve this there must be a clear explanation and clarification of what Geneva 1 remained silent about, namely the fate of Bashar al-Assad and bringing to justice those who have the blood of the Syrian people on their hands, led by regime officials who carried out the attack using chemical weapons in August. In addition, the Assad regime must abide by the outcome of the negotiations, and there must be a binding timetable for the completion of negotiations and a timetable for implementing the negotiations outcome.” Hajj went on: “Without the application of the six points that formed the basis of the Kofi Annan’s proposal, which represents the basis of the implementation of the Geneva Communique, then it would be difficult to sit at the negotiating table. Those points include humanitarian issues regarding the opening of humanitarian corridors, lifting the siege on the cities and towns, stopping the killing and starvation and the release of detainees, foremost women and children.” Hajj stressed that “a political solution is always appropriate because it helps end the bloodshed, and we as politicians must seek to spare our people more losses, and achieve the greatest gains. However, it should be pointed out that the FSA has been making growing progress lately, and it is clear that the Assad regime failed to achieve remarkable progress. It loses areas twice what it gains, and generally, the situation on the ground reached an apparent stalemate, but the regime control is wearing down, the regular army has disintegrated greatly, so the regime had to seek the support of sectarian militias such as Hezbollah, the Shiite Abu al-Fadl Abbas Brigade and Iranian Revolutionary Guard. For us this is a good time to reach a political solution, but we will not stop fighting before the completion of a satisfactory solution.” Regarding the meetings held between leaders in the Syrian Coalition and the Russians in Geneva a few days ago, he said: “The meeting with Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov was positive, and the Russians showed more understanding than ever, as they stated clearly and acknowledged that Geneva 1 is the negotiating framework and that the Syrian Coalition is responsible for the formation and leadership of the opposition delegation. This can be described as significant progress, but there is much to be agreed upon with them before embarking on negotiations, and on top of that the fate of Bashar al-Assad.” Haj stressed that the Syrian Coalition “will abide by the objectives of the revolution during the conference and will reject any detail that does not achieve the demands of the Revolution.” He also said: “All what the United States or the international community can do is to convince the parties to sit down at the negotiating table, but none of them can force the opposition to sign any agreement without their will, and we abide by the will of our people and its interests, and nobody can force us to sign any agreement that do not achieve the aspirations of our people and its revolution; namely, to live in Syria without Bashar al Assad.” (Source: Syrian Coalition + Italian AKI)
Explosion rocks central Damascus Four people were killed and dozens injured by a blast in Al Jubba in Al Jisr al Abiyad of Damascus, without any side adopting it. In the meantime, violent clashes took place between the Free Syrian Army and the regime’s forces near Harasta and Barzeh neighborhood, alogside heavy shelling with heavy artillery by regime forces. Also, a number of students were injured and others arrested during clashes with regime forces in the university campus of al Mazzeh. Meanwhile, the FSA destroyed four tanks in Marj al Sultan near Damascus. Clashes are still raging on the outskirts of the city in Nabek in Kalamoon between the Free Syrian Army and regime forces, alongside shelling by regime forces on the are with various types of heavy weapons which led to the death of a woman and injuring a number of civilians in addition to the destruction of a number of residential buildings. (Source: Syrian Coalition +Local Coordination Committees)
Clashes around the Armament Battalion near Dara’a The Free Syrian Army clashed with regime forces around Armament Battalion in Basr al Harir in rural Dara’a , in an attempt by regime forces to retake it. In addition, clashes took place in Manshia in Dara’a, coincided with bombing by regime forces on the neighborhoods controlled by the Free Syrian Army. Regime forces shelled the town of Al Shajara in rural Dra’a, with reports of civilian casualties and material damage. Meanwhile, the Free Syrian Army destroyed army vehicles between the towns of Khan Arnaba and the Baath in Rural Quneitra. Also, five people were killed in the village of Nab al Sakher after shelling by regime forces on the village with heavy artillery. (Source: Syrian Coalition +Local Coordination Committees)
FSA down Warplane in Eastern Hama The Free Syrian Army shot down a warplane east of Hama province. In addition, the FSA’s tanks shelled the Samman checkpoint in eastern rural Hama. In the meantime, regime’ forces shelled the village of Twaineh in al Ghab, with reports of civilian casualties and material damage. Regime forces launched a wide campaign of arrests against a number of civilians in the neighborhood of Qusour in Hama, alongside heavy gunfire. (Source: Syrian Coalition + Local Coordination Committees)
Clashes inside Aleppo, FSA Capture Regime Forces The Free Syrian Army clashed with regime forces in the area of Ashrafieh in Aleppo, alongside heavy shelling with various types of weapons. Meanwhile, the FSA attacked the Artillery Battalion Headquarters in Al Zharaa’ west of Aleppo with mortar rounds, with reports regime losses. The FSA also destroyed a tank belonging to regime forces and killed a number of regime troops after violent clashes in Anakarin in Aleppo. Furthermore, the FSA seized a number of buildings alongside heavy and medium weapons in the fronts of Sheikh Yusuf Hill and Mwasalat besides capturing three pro-Assad troops. In the meantime, the city of Al Bab near Aleppo was shelled with warplanes gunships, with reports of civilian casualties. (Source: Syrian Coalition + Local Coordination Committees)
France Confirms It Is Interested In the Syrian File and In Improving the Conditions of the Syrians Laurent Fabius, French Foreign Minister announced that his country, which took over the presidency of the Security Council of the United Nations for the coming month, will keep Syria at the heart of its concerns and will make efforts to improve the situations for the Syrians. “There are talks on Syria’s chemical weapons now, while the suffering of the Syrian people do not stop due to the conflict there,” Fabius said, adding that “it is clear that the chemical weapons represent a major threat and must be disposed of, but innocent people are killed every day in Syria. The international community must to put an end to their suffering, and this can only be achieved through a political solution represented by the Geneva 2, which is being seriously prepared for, though in a very complicated conditions.” It should be noted that France took over a month-long presidency of the Security Council on December 1. (Source: Syrian Coalition)
Ban Ki-moon: Iran’s Should Attend Geneva 2 Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary General of the United Nations said that “Iran’s participation in Geneva 2 is necessary,” adding that Tehran can “play an important role in resolving the Syrian issue.” Ki-moon also stated that “made no decision yet about the list of participants at the conference expected to be held on January 22, hoping to reach consensus on the participants in the preparatory meeting, which will be held on December 20 in Geneva with the participation of the United Nations, Russia and the United States, and he expressed he could send invitations with the end of the month.” The Syrian Coalition had rejected Iran’s participation in Geneva 2, considering it as “an occupying country.” (Source: Syrian Coalition)
Brahimi with the Creation of a Democratic Republic in Syria The joint UN-Arab envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, announced his support for a “new republic” in Syria, whose nature is determined by the Syrians. “In my opinion, a new republican, democratic and non-sectarian system must be established in Syria.” Brahimi added: “It is the right of the Syrians to decide what this new system is, which will prevail in their country, and what the nature of the new republic which will see light.” He also called for reaching a “quick settlement to the conflict in Syria, otherwise we would see a bigger Somalia, with all kinds of warlords who will divide the country among themselves.” However, he said that “the Syrians want to maintain the integrity of their country, besides that the region and the world need to reach a Syria that is united. (Source: Syrian Coalition)
