Maliki Warns of Civil Wars in Lebanon, Iraq if Syria Rebels Win
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Iraq's prime minister warned Wednesday that a victory for Syria's rebels will spark sectarian wars in Lebanon and Iraq and will create a new haven for al-Qaida that would destabilize the region.
The comments by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in an interview with The Associated Press marked one of his strongest warnings yet about the turmoil that toppling Syrian President Bashar Assad could create in the Middle East.
"If the world does not agree to support a peaceful solution through dialogue ... then I see no light at the end of the tunnel.
"Neither the opposition nor the regime can finish each other off," he said. "If the opposition is victorious, there will be a civil war in Lebanon, divisions in Jordan and a sectarian war in Iraq."
Maliki's warning comes as his government confronts growing tensions of its own between the Shiite majority and an increasingly restive Sunni minority nearly a decade after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
Fighting in Syria has sharp sectarian overtones, with predominantly Sunni rebels battling a regime dominated by Alawites, an offshoot of Shiite Islam.
Assad's regional allies are Shiite Iran and Hizbullah.
Al-Maliki too is a Shiite and his sect dominates Iraq's government.
His comments reflect growing fears by many Shiites in Iraq and elsewhere that Sunnis would come to dominate Syria should Assad be pushed from power.
The toppling of Assad would deal a serious blow to the regional influence of Syria's patron Iran, which has built increasingly strong relations with Iraq's Shiite-dominated government.
Iraq has tried to maintain a neutral stance toward the civil war in Syria, saying that the aspirations of the Syrian people should be met through peaceful means.
Speaking from his office in a Saddam Hussein-era palace inside Baghdad's heavily guarded Green Zone, al-Maliki reiterated his stance that foreign military intervention is not a solution to ending the crisis in Syria.
He called on outside countries to "be more reasonable regarding Syria."
Al-Maliki, 62, has long been accused by many Sunnis of promoting his Shiite sect at their expense and for being too closely aligned with neighboring Iran.
His government has faced two months of unexpectedly resilient protests from the Sunni minority, whose members held many senior positions in Saddam's regime and lost their political prominence to the Shiites after he was ousted in the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.
27 February 2013, 18:17
88
the shia have nothing to do in the above stated countries: they should stop all military take overs attempts, and withdraw, otherwise they will be kicked out.
oppressing others especially in Lebanon never worked and any tyranny is bound to end.
27 February 2013, 18:22
01
look who's talking: the most sectarian, corrupt and evil terrorist!
27 February 2013, 18:38
37
I humbly disagree with Maliki that Lebanon will go into civil war if the opposition in Syria wins, while not disagreeing that this will eventually lead to civil war in Iraq. The Lebanese have gotten tired of civil wars and have no appetite for one more. In my opinion, if the opposition wins, Huzbullah will dismantle immediately and Lebanon will be heavenly with peace spreading everywhere while the arms will only be in the hands of the army. I also think that Assad couldn’t govern even if he wins the war because all western nations will not deal with him while the Arab will shy away from financing rebuilding Syria destruction estimated at 200 billion dollars. Iran will not build from its money the houses of the Sunni citizens. So, Assad is a loser in either way. The best is for him to go to his friend lavrov in Russia.
27 February 2013, 18:40
34
Khalssouna ba2a let this war be and then there will be a winner and its over better than having each laps of time a small battle
27 February 2013, 19:11
64
Maliki is a dead man, he's a thief and the Iraqi judicial system is after him. He should ask Saddam where his bunker was and hide in it ASAP.
27 February 2013, 19:21
01
Trueself says that the Lebanese people are fed up with civil war and therefore civil war can be ruled out. However, citizens always and everywhere are against civil war, yet civil wars happen nonetheless. Citizens do not make policy; the leadership does.
27 February 2013, 19:33
65
Agent there thousands of Lebanese christian and she3a working in wahabi Saudi? What kind of retarded racist analysis is yours lol? How about them sun is in Ahwaz Iran? How are they living? Iran is no better than Saudi only Iran has Hitler fantasy if expansion that will blow in its face. Go read some history, who keep the minority presence in the Levant during the Muslim.empire? Did Muslims embark on genocide against minorities? If that was the case you would not be talking today. I'm an evolutionist and anti religion, but even the staunchest of westerners were fair to history and to the likes of salahdeen
unlike you.
27 February 2013, 21:37
32
also "go read some history" the muslim empires in the levant used a very different form of islam to rule. let us take the ottomans for example, the sultan was hanafi, as were the judiciary and state officials, the military (janissaries) were of the BEKDASHI sufi order obligatorily. the bekdashi sufi order is a shiite order par excellence, meaning that the army of the great ottoman empire was a shiite army.
as for the islam of today that is sponsored by saudi petrodollars and called wahhabism/salafism, it has nothing in common with the great islam of the precursor muslim empires. you cant even have a church in saudi arabia lol. istanbul was riddled with churches even after the ottoman conquest of 1453.
28 February 2013, 03:28
12
joker, you truly are a joker. The ottoman army was shiite? Lol at your taqiyyah. Never confuse Islam with shiaism. God warned in the quran against creating sects and becoming shia, so what do shias do? They create a sect and even call it shia. Stop trying to confuse people. I dont care what you believe in, whether a flying mahdi who has been alive for 1000 years hiding or in imamah fake prophethood or whatever, just dont call it islam. Islam is a simple pure religion whereas shiaism is a bunch of fairy tales and lies. Shias, Salafis and the sufis should all be banned from using Islam as their trademark as all three of you have created sects and strange ideas (bid3a) in islams name. The ottomans (sufis) didnt even build universities and left the muslim world vulnerable which lead to colonialism. Shiaism, well it has nothing to do with islam so i dont even know why its followers want to be muslims and salafis, they are extremists and are making haram what allah swt never made haram.
28 February 2013, 04:07
11
joker37 - It is true that most Arabs in Ahwaz are Shia but also it is true that are discriminated against in almost every way in Iran. Their communities are among the poorest in Iran while sitting on a sea of oil whose wealth they are denied.
27 February 2013, 19:36
54
Who put Maliki in power anyway? Was it not for the US Iraq would have been Saddam still. Where are all the M8 ERS? Isn't this an 'Israeli american' conspiracy? Maliki now is another mumani3 muqawem in the M8 dictionary I.e an Iranian agent, bala muqawame bala bateekh
27 February 2013, 19:59
00
Of course Mr Maliki, because the loosers will try to reinstate the previous status quo earned through blunt murder, dictatorship, dirty money, and ideology !
28 February 2013, 01:30
11
if ever a civil war in lebanon M8 will have to bear its responsability.....
28 February 2013, 15:18
00
Maliki is just another Irania puppet just like Nousrala and Aoun...
30 May 2013, 12:01
00
It's 30th May 2013 and your Lunatic Bastard Syrian Wahabi Salafist Rebels are being drilled right inside Al-Qusayr. Assad and Hezbollah will ful you right inside your Home you Son of Yazeed Bin Muaviya tha cursed one
