President of the Syrian National Coalition, Anas Abdah, said that the goal of co-opting representatives of the Syrian Tribal Council and the Association of Kurdish Independents is to inject new blood into the Coalition and increase its strength and efficiency.
In an interview with Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed newspaper, President Abdah pointed to the important role of Syrian tribes in the history of Syria in general and in the Syrian revolution in particular. He said that these tribes embraced the forces of the revolution in resisting the Assad regime, its allied, militias and ISIS.
President Abdah pointed out that the Association of Kurdish Independents “is our partner in the revolution and the national line. We are happy to have them joining us in the Syrian Coalition which will allow them to expand their national role through the Syrian Coalition’s institutions.”
With regards to the intra-Kurdish dialogue being sponsored by international parties, President Abdah said: “The only guideline of the Syrian Coalition is the principles of the Syrian revolution. We believe in dialogue to reach a solution that brings an end to the suffering of our people with all its components, provided that this solution corresponds with the fundamental principles of the revolution, namely to build a free, civil, and democratic state for all citizens in which murderers and terrorists have no place.”
“Among the most important conditions for the success of the dialogue, which was also adopted by the Kurdish National Council, is standing on the side of the Syrian revolution, severing all ties with the regime, and dissociating from the terrorist Qandil organization at the political, military, security and financial levels, in addition to forcing non-Syrian elements from the PYD-held regions, emphasizing good, neighborly relations and non-interference in the affairs of neighboring countries, considering the Kurdish issue a Syrian national issue that should be exclusively resolved in Syria.”
President Abdah talked about the situation in Idlib and the ceasefire agreement. He stressed that “this file is one of our top priorities,” adding that the Syrian Coalition “is closely following the issue along with the Turkish brothers who still commit to their previous pledges.” He pointed out that the current ceasefire saw the fewest violations on the part of the regime despite its track record of disrespect for all agreements and truces.”
“We are fully prepared for all scenarios,” President Abdah said. He thanked Turkey for its great role in safeguarding the agreement and for providing the necessary support for the return of people to their towns and villages.”
“Tens of thousands of civilians have already returned to their homes due to the relative calm that followed the latest ceasefire. We are working to enable the rest of IDP to return to their homes in cooperation with the Turkish side. In addition, the Syrian Interim Government is doing lots of action to this end despite the scarce resources.”
President Abdah stressed the need to enable all the IDP to return to their areas as he rejected the displacement of people or forcing them to move to other places as this serves the regime’s policy of demographic change, which it pursued in most Syrian regions.”
“Our number one priority is the return of all IDP to their towns and villages and to ensure a safe and suitable environment for them to live in.” (Source: SOC’s Media Department)
