Hizbullah and Amal Back Assad’s Reform to Consolidate Syria

The Hizbullah leadership in the South and top members of Amal in Jabal Amel backed on Saturday Syrian President Bashar Assad’s reform efforts which they said aim at consolidating the country against foreign plots.

Following a meeting they held at Hizbullah’s offices in Tyre, the two sides said in a statement that the attempts to target Syria’s stability and the unity of its people and army are aimed at hindering its support for the Palestinian people and their right to liberate their land.

They added that the Assad regime is also being targeted for its support of Lebanon, its people and resistance against the Israeli occupation.

“We back the reformist approach of President Bashar Assad that is aimed at consolidating Syria against internal strife and foreign plots,” the statement said.

Assad called on Wednesday a constitutional referendum for Feb. 26 that would effectively end nearly 50 years of single-party rule.

In April, Assad scrapped emergency rule in force since 1963, when the Baathists took power in a coup d'etat. But he has repeatedly promised reforms that have failed to materialize since the uprising erupted in March.

On Lebanon, Hizbullah and Amal said that the Lebanese officials should put the interest of the nation and citizens above anything else in resolving the problems left over from previous governments.

They also urged authorities to speed up their efforts to prevent a further deterioration in the economic situation.