Italy FM: Assad is Not Gadhafi and Libya is Not Syria
Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini drew a distinction between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Libyan leader Moammer Gadhafi, saying Assad had proposed reforms and played a strong diplomatic role.
"Assad made promises for reforms that he didn't keep. Gadhafi never promised reforms," Frattini said in an interview with Corriere della Sera daily.
"Assad has shown over the years that he can be and has been an interlocutor who could have a strong role, for example within the Arab League," he said.
"Gadhafi was never loved even when he was at his most powerful," he added.
"It would be very wrong to generalize. Assad is not Gadhafi and Libya is not Syria. They're very different situations," the foreign minister concluded.
Up to 850 people have been killed and at least 8,000 arrested in Syria since the protest movement emerged in mid-March, human rights groups say.
Source: Agence France Presse
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