President of the Syrian Coalition Riad Seif on Thursday met with Jean-Louis de Brouwer, Director of Humanitarian and Civil Protection Operations Civilians at the headquarters of the European Union in Brussels on Thursday. Seif is accompanied by head of the Syrian Interim Government (SIG) Jawad Abu Hatab and members of the Coalition’s political committee.
Seif stressed that the mass forced displacement carried out by the Assad regime forces aimed at changing the demographic landscape in Syria constitute a war crime under international law. He stressed the need to take concrete, urgent action to ensure the safe return of the displaced people to their towns and villages.
Seif warned of a humanitarian disaster during the ongoing operation to capture Raqqa from ISIS, stressing that fighting terrorism could only be achieved through the elimination of its root cause, namely the Assad regime.
For his part, De Brouwer reaffirmed the importance of cooperation with the Syrian Coalition and the Syrian Interim Government in the next phase and pointed to the need for frequent meetings between the two sides.
In addition to Seif and Abu Hatab, the Coalition’s delegation included members of the political committee Anas Abda, Hadi Bahra, and Haws Khalil as well as member of the General Assembly Ruba Haboush.
Seif is set to meet the EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini on Friday to discuss the situation in Syria and EU support for the opposition and the Syrian Interim Government. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
