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No deal with Assad regime, Bush tells dissidents
Levant News,
December 13, 2007
Washington, Dec
13, 2007 (Levant News) - American president George Bush told
a delegation of Syrian dissidents his administration has not
held secret talks with Syrian regime, and is not intending
to do so.
News of an
unprecedented meeting between Bush and three Syrian
dissidents leaked few days ago by "Counter Terrorism".
An American
source close to the meeting told Levant News it took place
on 4th December 2007 at the White House and
lasted 55 minutes. The three dissidents were: former
Parliamentarian Mamoun Homsi, Director of Tharwa Project in
Washington Ammar Abdulhamid and Syrian Kurdish activist
Jenkiz-khan Hesso.
The source
revealed Bush's pessimistic view of any talks with the
Syrian regime stating no such talks are expected as only a
"miracle" could change the behaviour of Bashar Assad. This
is new to American policy which so far had maintained a
policy of "behaviour change" towards Syria instead of
"regime change".
The meeting
took place only days after an official Syrian delegation
attended Annapolis conference on the Middle East on 27th
November 2007 to re-launch Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.
The American administration does not want Syrians to read
the invitation of a delegation to Annapolis wrong, the
source explained, adding "The Syrian regime still has a long
way to go before having talks with the United States".
Syrian
dissidents insisted human rights issues should be central to
American policy towards Syria, the source said. They also
made it clear that all Syrian opposition groups object to
any military action against Syria and any foreign
occupation. They asked for the isolation of Syrian regime
figures to help the cause of democracy and civil rights in
the country.
Former Syrian
Parliamentarian Mamoun Homsi told Levant News that the
Syrian delegation highlighted the need to bring those who
committed crimes against the Syrian people to justice. "The
Syrians are a great people and they deserve freedom", he
said. "The regime is misrepresenting the people".
Director of
Tharwa Project Ammar Abdulhamid, another member of the
Syrian delegation, told Levant News "any impression of a
deal between the Syrian regime and American administration
is false".
"We listened to
Bush's clear negativity towards the Syrian regime"
Abdulhamid added, in response to a recent comment by Syrian
ambassador in Washington Imad Moustapha who said the "body
language" of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was
"positive" when she met the official Syrian delegation to
Annapolis.
Abdulhamid said
the dissidents asked president Bush to place at the heart of
American policy towards the Syrian regime demands like
ending the State of Emergency and human rights violations.
"We got a good response", he said, expecting human rights
issues to be raised by the United States. |
