President of the Syrian Opposition Coalition (SOC), Salem al-Meslet, met with Germany’s ambassador to Turkey, Jürgen Schulz, and his accompanying delegation. The two sides discussed the latest on the ground and political developments in Syria, especially the crimes being committed by the Assad regime and its backers against civilians in Dara’a province and northwestern Syria.
The meeting was attended by SOC’s Vice-president Abdel Hakim Bashar, Abdulahad Asteipho and Ruba Habboush, Secretary-General Haitham Rahma, and members of the political committee Badr Jamous and Abdel Majid Barakat.
Al-Meslet reiterated that political transition is the only way to get Syria out of the crisis that the criminal regime and its backers have caused. He also stressed that the friends of the Syrian people and Germany have an important role in achieving this solution, reaffirming the SOC’s commitment to UN resolutions, most notably the Geneva Communique of 2012 and UN Security Council Resolutions 2118 and 2254.
Al-Meslet pointed out that political solution within the currently proposed procedures is almost impossible to reach as the Assad regime still pursues a bloody military solution, which has cost Syria countless lives and disasters.
Asteipho thanked Germany for supporting the Syrian people, hosting many Syrians, and for the measures it is taking towards the issue of accountability. He called for establishing an international mechanism in order to hold all war criminals accountable, especially the criminal Bashar al-Assad.
For his part, the German ambassador reiterated his country’s support for the aspirations and hopes of the Syrian people for freedom, dignity and democracy. He stressed that the unity of the Syrian people is of great importance.
Schulz stressed that the protection of civilians must be a top priority as he underscored the need to stop the bombing of populated areas and advance a political solution. (Source: SOC’s Media Department)