U.S. Spy Chief Says Fall of Syrian Regime Inevitable
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime will inevitably collapse in the face of mounting protests, the U.S. spy chief said Tuesday.
"I do not see how he can sustain his rule of Syria," the director of national intelligence, James Clapper, told senators. "I personally believe it's a question of time but that's the issue, it could be a long time."
The opposition was "fragmented" but was piling pressure on Assad, he said, adding it remained unclear what would happen after the Syrian leader's departure.
CIA director David Petraeus, testifying at the same hearing before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, also described the regime as increasingly at risk.
The opposition had displayed "resilience" and the regime now faced challenges in Damascus and Aleppo, two cities that had been seen as insulated from the unrest, said Petraeus, a retired four-star general who served as commander in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"I think it has shown indeed how substantial the opposition to the regime is and how it is in fact growing and how increasing areas are becoming beyond the reach of the regime security forces," he said.
Iran was working to shore up Assad's rule and the fall of the regime would deliver a major blow to Tehran, which relies on Syria as a vital logistics link to Hizbullah in Lebanon, he said.
"Clearly, the loss of Syria as a logistics platform, a line of communication into Lebanon to support Hizbullah would be a substantial setback for Iran in its effort to use Hizbullah as a proxy and that's indeed why the Revolutionary Guard is so engaged in trying to prop up Bashar al-Assad right now," Petraeus said.
Source: Agence France Presse
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