Syria Opposition Urges Iran Review Policy after Rowhani Win
The key opposition Syrian National Coalition urged newly elected Iranian President Hassan Rowhani on Saturday to review his country's support for the Syrian regime.
The "Coalition believes that it is its duty to call on the new president of Iran to rectify the mistakes made by the Iranian leadership," the group said, in reference to Tehran's staunch backing of President Bashar Assad.
"For more than two years of the Syrian revolution, the Iranian authorities have stood against the aspirations of the Syrian people by continuing to support the criminal Assad regime politically, militarily and economically," the Coalition said.
The statement urged Rowhani to "reform Iran's position... before it is too late," adding that "the will of the Syrian people is invincible and will not fail because of outside intervention."
Iran is a longtime ally of the Syrian regime and has rallied to the side of the embattled Assad government as it tackles a full-scale uprising that began with peaceful protests in March 2011.
Tehran says it wants a political solution to the conflict, but the opposition accuses it of supplying the regime with weapons as well as propping it up financially.
Despite itself suffering the effects of international sanctions targeting its uranium enrichment program, Iran has offered Syria billions of dollars in loans to help it weather the effects of international boycotts.
Militants from Hizbullah, which is closely allied with Tehran, have also traveled to Syria to help fight the rebel uprising.
Source: Agence France Presse
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