'Disappointed' Syria Opposition Thinks U.S. Congress Will OK Strike, Damascus Says Obama 'Hesitant, Confused'
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Syria's main opposition bloc said Sunday it was disappointed with U.S. President Barack Obama's decision to seek approval from Congress for action against the regime, but said it believed lawmakers would OK a strike, as Damascus described the U.S. leader as "hesitant" and "confused."
"We had a feeling of disappointment. We were expecting things to be quicker, that a strike would be imminent... But we believe Congress will approve a strike," said Samir Nashar, a top official at the Syrian National Coalition.
To general surprise, Obama on Saturday postponed threatened missile strikes against Syria that the world had thought were imminent, opting instead for the risky gamble of getting Congress approval.
This effectively pushes back any military action aimed at punishing the regime over an alleged poison gas attack until at least September 9, when U.S. lawmakers return from their summer recess.
Nashar said the coalition was confident that Arab foreign ministers who meet Sunday in Cairo would give "very strong support" to U.S.-led military action.
"The Turkish position is also very important. Washington needs this support," the Istanbul-based official said.
"The coalition will get in touch with Arab countries and Turkey so that they cooperate as much as possible with the United States," he said.
"We will try to push these countries to take part in the military operation, which will greatly alleviate the suffering of Syrians."
Later on Sunday, the Coalition pleaded with the U.S. Congress to "make the right choice" and approve the military strike.
In a statement, it called on "members of the U.S. Congress to make the right choice and support the administration's efforts to stop the (Bashar)Assad killing machine."
"If the free world fails to respond to such an outrageous breach of international norms, dictators around the world will be encouraged in their efforts to follow the example set by Assad," the opposition group warned.
Meanwhile, Damascus said Sunday that Obama has grown "hesitant" and "confused."
"President Obama was clearly hesitant, disappointed and confused when he spoke yesterday," Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Muqdad told reporters, in the Syrian regime's first reaction to Obama's announcement.
Muqdad also slammed France's government as "irresponsible" and accused it of trying to dupe its own people over its support of a military strike on Damascus over the alleged gas attack.
"There is a responsible government in Syria but there is no responsible government in Paris," he said. French political leaders had "falsified facts and supported organizations like al-Qaida."
"We believe the (French) president and his foreign minister are deceiving the French people to justify the failed policies against Syria, and they will not succeed," he told reporters in Damascus.
Muqdad urged U.S. lawmakers to show "wisdom" in their vote on military action.
"We ask the U.S. Congress to show wisdom," he said, once again denying his regime was behind the alleged poison gas attack that precipitated American and French calls for military action.
"Chemical weapons have been used by al-Qaida and those who are in their pay thanks to what Turkey, Saudi Arabia and other countries supply to these terrorists," he said, using the government's term for anti-regime rebels.
01 September 2013, 12:24
116
Hahahahahahaha!!!! LOL @ Opposition! One after the other they all succumb to the power and determination of the Islamic Iranian Resistance aka HA (Hussain Army). The British Empire and now the French have decided to heed the call of logic and back off from this silly adventure. They are all afraid of the resistance's deadly and unprecedented response. Sayyid Nassrallah and his waving finger (God Bless this finger) have scared them off and made them shake in their boots. Obama must ask himself if he wants the USS Nimitiz to sink in front of Ouzai and suffer painful humiliation at the hands of Hussain Navy Seals. The choice is your Barka:)
01 September 2013, 19:22
33
You are right, this moribund stinky smell in Ouzai is deadlier than Sarin gas.
01 September 2013, 12:48
89
FSA-Al Qaeda is upset that the Americans are no longer interested in helping them. I mean, they destroyed the twin towers and killed thousands in the process, killed thousands more American soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, and now are upset that the US might not strike Syria?
What exactly was FSA-Al Qaeda expecting?
01 September 2013, 15:38
18
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Haram, M14ers, left out in the cold (as usual). How many years will it take for you guys to learn that America does NOT do what it promises?
01 September 2013, 15:55
15
Who is the opposition anyway? I mean what do they bring to Syrian and its people if they were to be put in power? Could they restore Syria as it was? Could they keep Syria as a sovereign nation un influenced by KSA & co? Could they guarantee the religious freedom that Syria has enjoyed in the past? Will they guarantee the safety on minority religious sects? At the very least could they as a government provide the basics for their citizens? I would say NO.. Because they can't even agree among themselves as a resulted of their disfunctions they have attracted the terrorists of al-qeida/nusra into their ranks..
01 September 2013, 18:09
17
Not One single person from the so called FSA umbrella groups have ever liked or supported the US in past nor will in the future, now after all this mess they have created for themselves, the Syrian people, as well as for the Region especially Lebanon, literally they are begging for a US strike against the regime & innocent people regardless of the outcome. It really shows how desperate they have become even to the extent without any doubt they used the CW just to engage the US in a Military Intervention to oust Bashar Al Assad. What low scums even lower than the Israeli treatment against the Palestinians & other Arab Nations .What is worse is US soldiers who have sacrificed themselves fighting terrorists have been betrayed by their own Government by just contemplating to help these same terrorists that killed tens of thousands of innocent American lives, one example is Libya. Amazing, one sleeps with their eternal enemy while the other gets Shafted !
Signed Wolf .....
01 September 2013, 18:19
110
There is no doubt that Assad is a criminal, not any less than his opposition. The Syrians deserve better leaders than any of these two. Currently it's a fight between extremist Shiites, vs extremist Sunni. Why would the west support any of them. Why would the US do the dirty work for the Saudis. Let the Muslims clean their own dirt, before they ask for western help.
01 September 2013, 21:55
00
Whether there is a need to learn from American promises, that would certainly depend on who is on the receiving end of the promise, and the make up of the current U.S. administration. When you ask such stupid questions as above, you're undermining your own position. Both Sunnis and Shiites have acted in a despicable manner, and the world already knows the former is the instigator. Syria screwed things up as soon it forged alliances with Iran who does not necessarily share the same interests with the Arab Nations but rather wants to take the role of a super power in the region and benefit economically. What most Arabs on the streets fail to understand is that all super powers need to engage in commerce with the countries under its wings in order to survive, especially the ones with natural resources, strategic locations, etc.
01 September 2013, 21:56
00
So, don't hold your breath. U.S. Administrations come and go. The U.S. is not an autocratic regime like the ones you're used to in Syria, Libya, Egypt, etc. The idiot Morsi in Egypt thought he can be elected "democratically" and then go back being an autocrat. This is how much respect he had towards the brave Egyptians who help oust an autocrat. Unless the Arabs stop blaming their problems on others, like Zionism (which I think it is exaggerated), West, U.S., Christians, etc., they will always find themselves in a vicious cycle because they are not concentrating on the real enemy. If the Zionists are truly your enemy, first unite, and then address this threat. Arguable, the biggest problem that Lebanon has been facing are the armed Palestinians inside our land. What is the difference between Zionism and Islamism if you don't prescribe to either point of view?
02 September 2013, 00:46
00
Regardless, the Syrian regime WILL FALL ONE OF THESE DAYS, says Dr. Arreet 7akeh who knows not what he knows, let alone what he does not know. No wonder he has an almost-daily BS show. How else is he going to cater to his dumb self-hair plucking, family-member beating followers, Drs. Arteena Satleh?
