The Syrian Coalition’s presidential body and political committee received representatives of friendly countries and discussed with them the heavy bombing campaign by the Assad regime and the Russian forces against civilians in Idlib. The meeting also discussed the political process, most importantly efforts to resume the UN-led Geneva negotiations.
President of the Syrian Coalition Abdurrahman Mustafa said that the Assad regime, Russia and the Iranian terrorist organizations are committing a new series of war crimes in Idlib and rural Hama. He called on friendly countries to mobilize efforts at the international level to ensure perpetrators of these crimes are held accountable. “We are completing the files of accountability for war crimes in Syria. We hope that you will be further mobilized in international forums to hold war criminals accountable.”
Mustafa expressed hope that there will be international action to stop the crimes taking place in northern Syria, which is being subjected to heavy bombardment that mainly targets residential buildings and vital civilian centers. He pointed out that serious international action would avert a new human tragedy affecting civilians and the forcibly displaced people.
He stressed that Russia is targeting civilians, hospitals and service facilities while ignoring targets of Al-Qaeda, adding that Russia has been pursuing this strategy from the beginning to strengthen terrorism and crush the Syrian revolution.
Moreover, Mustafa underscored that the Coalition rejects the existence of any terrorist organizations on Syrian territory just as it rejects the presence of Iranian terrorist organizations in Syria. “We were the first to suffer at the hands of these groups. The Free Syrian Army was the first to confront these terrorist organizations as it fought them in various parts of Syria. These groups must not be used as a pretext to kill civilians and bring about a demographic change in the country.”
“Under the pretext of fighting terrorist organizations, the Assad regime and Moscow have forcibly displaced the people of Aleppo, eastern Ghouta, Darayya, Homs, Qalmoun and Dara’a,” Mustafa added. “There is no other Idlib for civilians to move to,” he said, warning of an unprecedented humanitarian disaster as the region is home to more than three million civilians.
Mustafa also stressed that such disaster will create a new global refugee crisis affecting most countries. He called on friendly countries to exert international pressure to protect Syrian civilians and maintain the truce in Idlib, especially as it is the last remaining de-escalation zone.
Mustafa praised the position of Turkey as well as the international and European support which is consistent with the position of the Syrian Coalition in its rejection of escalation and the holocaust being planned in Idlib.
He pointed out the Coalition is also focusing on the political process and negotiations and said: “We constantly coordinate efforts with the Syrian Negotiations Commission with regards to political and negotiating issues as well as the formation of the Constitutional Committee. We are still committed to a political solution that guarantees the rights of the Syrian people.”
Mustafa underscored that the political process must be comprehensive and not limited to the constitutional process. He said that Russian is seeking to rehabilitate the Assad regime and prevent a full political transition in Syria in line with the Geneva Communique of 2012 and UN Security Council resolution 2254. “We believe that there is no solution except a political one that is sponsored by the United Nations.” (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
