Barak Says Assad 'Brutality' Will Lead to His Downfall
The "brutality" of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's response to anti-government protesters will lead to the downfall of his regime, according to Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak.
"I think that Assad is approaching the point where he will lose his internal legitimacy," Barak told Israel's Channel 10 television on Monday night.
"His brutality has caused more and more deaths and is pushing him into a corner. His chances of getting out are getting smaller," he said.
"Even if he stops the bloodshed, I don't think he can restore his legitimacy," Barak said.
"He may recover, but in my opinion it won't be the same and he is destined to meet the same fate as the leaders of other Arab countries shaken by uprisings."
But Barak said that "Israel has nothing to fear from Assad being replaced," despite the concerns of many in the Jewish state, who see the Syrian leader as a known quantity whose downfall could spell violence for Israel.
"The process taking place across the Middle East is very promising and inspires hope in the long-term," he said, but he warned that there was little Israel could do to influence the situation and that "it would be preferable for us to stay out of it altogether."
Israel and the Palestinians have been keeping a close eye on the situation in Syria, where pro-democracy demonstrators have held weeks of protests seeking the overthrow of Assad's regime.
Israel fears a new regime could take a more hostile approach to the Jewish state than Assad, who has maintained quiet along the border despite close ties with Iran, the Palestinian militant group Hamas and Lebanon's Hizbullah.
The Palestinians have kept largely quiet on the unrest, though on Tuesday, several dozen members of the Islamic Hizb ut-Tahrir movement in Gaza held a demonstration in solidarity with Syrian protesters.
They chanted slogans against Assad, calling him a "criminal who is killing his own people."
Source: Agence France Presse
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