Syria’s Bashar Al Assad has long been hiding behind the Kremlin, or behind Russian President Vladimir Putin, to be precise. Now, as pressure builds up on him, he has unabashedly sought refuge in pro-Putin media. On Wednesday, the embattled Syrian president spoke to a bunch of journalists from Russia representing RT, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Channel 1, Russia 24, RIA Novosti, and NTV channel. All these news outlets are either owned by the Russian government or are pro-Kremlin. It seems that a shaken Assad is seeking comfort in spouting anti-Western rhetoric through media whose objectivity is seriously compromised.
In a long interview, Assad, officially leading a country whose sovereignty has been compromised by a civil war that has taken a heavy toll on its territory and people, accused the West of crying over Syrian refugees. He should realise that the West may have been buffeted by the mass influx of Syrian migrants, but it is trying to do something within its means to make the hundreds of thousands of men, women and children as comfortable as it can. If anyone is crying, it is the common Syrian who has endured bombings by the regime and the bullets of IS militants and Syrian rebel groups, while Assad and his lackeys are ensconced in their palatial homes. It is the body of Aylan Kurdi on a Turkish beach that has made the world tear up, not completely oblivious of the fact that one man — Assad— is behind the denouement of millions of suffering Syrians. If someone is actually crying, squealing about his purported legitimacy as the ground slips under his feet, it is Assad himself who is trying to tell the world that he is not responsible for Syria’s ills.
The Syrian president declared that the refugee crisis, which has shaken Europe and sent ripples across the world, has come about because people are fleeing terrorism. Terrorism, if that is the definition Assad gives of an armed uprising against him, has come about because a peaceful revolt — part of the Arab Spring rebellions — was crushed mercilessly by regime forces.
Now, ordinary Syrians are being torn between the regime and rebel groups. Citizens are being squeezed out of the country torn as they are between the need for loyalty towards the regime and support for opposition to Assad.
Assad has disowned responsibility for the refugee crisis and is dismissive of the idea of leaving the presidency. He is relying on another round of talks, called Moscow-3, to be held in the Russian capital. Assad is the root cause of the Syrian civil war, which has led to the Islamic State getting a foothold in the country, and it can only end if he goes before any meaningful talks can be held.
Syria’s Bashar Al Assad has long been hiding behind the Kremlin, or behind Russian President Vladimir Putin, to be precise. Now, as pressure builds up on him, he has unabashedly sought refuge in pro-Putin media. On Wednesday, the embattled Syrian president spoke to a bunch of journalists from Russia representing RT, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Channel 1, Russia 24, RIA Novosti, and NTV channel. All these news outlets are either owned by the Russian government or are pro-Kremlin. It seems that a shaken Assad is seeking comfort in spouting anti-Western rhetoric through media whose objectivity is seriously compromised.
In a long interview, Assad, officially leading a country whose sovereignty has been compromised by a civil war that has taken a heavy toll on its territory and people, accused the West of crying over Syrian refugees. He should realise that the West may have been buffeted by the mass influx of Syrian migrants, but it is trying to do something within its means to make the hundreds of thousands of men, women and children as comfortable as it can. If anyone is crying, it is the common Syrian who has endured bombings by the regime and the bullets of IS militants and Syrian rebel groups, while Assad and his lackeys are ensconced in their palatial homes. It is the body of Aylan Kurdi on a Turkish beach that has made the world tear up, not completely oblivious of the fact that one man — Assad— is behind the denouement of millions of suffering Syrians. If someone is actually crying, squealing about his purported legitimacy as the ground slips under his feet, it is Assad himself who is trying to tell the world that he is not responsible for Syria’s ills.
The Syrian president declared that the refugee crisis, which has shaken Europe and sent ripples across the world, has come about because people are fleeing terrorism. Terrorism, if that is the definition Assad gives of an armed uprising against him, has come about because a peaceful revolt — part of the Arab Spring rebellions — was crushed mercilessly by regime forces.
Now, ordinary Syrians are being torn between the regime and rebel groups. Citizens are being squeezed out of the country torn as they are between the need for loyalty towards the regime and support for opposition to Assad.
Assad has disowned responsibility for the refugee crisis and is dismissive of the idea of leaving the presidency. He is relying on another round of talks, called Moscow-3, to be held in the Russian capital. Assad is the root cause of the Syrian civil war, which has led to the Islamic State getting a foothold in the country, and it can only end if he goes before any meaningful talks can be held.
