Assad Foes Near to Opposition Unity Deal

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Syrians from a broad spectrum of opposition to President Bashar Assad seemed close Thursday to reaching agreement on a unified political structure that world powers will accept as credible and representative.

"We are moving towards agreement," said Burhan Ghalioun, former chief of the main opposition Syrian National Council hours after the meeting started.

Any agreement on unifying opposition ranks "could boost the uprising" as it will enable the opposition later to unite the different military groups battling regime troops, he added.

Prominent dissident Riad Seif, who had proposed a Western-backed initiative to unite the opposition and form a transitional government, shared the optimism.

"We are very optimistic" an agreement can be reached "tonight or tomorrow," Seif told reporters.

The opposition is moving towards creating "a political leadership that would satisfy the Syrians and be recognized by the international community," he said, adding that there were "big chances" the initiative would "succeed."

Seif's initiative was earlier challenged by the SNC, which agreed on Monday in Doha to broaden its structure to accommodate 13 other groups.

The SNC had insisted that the "only body that can form a transitional government is a general national congress bringing together all political opposition forces, in which the SNC would hold the biggest share."

Seif has reportedly proposed that the SNC be given only 15 of 50 seats in the new group, to make room for activists from inside Syria.

Washington wants the opposition to reshape into a widely representative government-in-exile.

Opposition leaders say such a body could be sited outside Syria or in zones now under rebel control.

"The organizers were inspired by all the initiatives presented to us to finally come up with a project we could discuss," said one participant, requesting anonymity. "Qatar has put all its weight behind achieving an agreement."

He said the organizers had prepared a summary of all the initiatives to be discussed later Thursday.

The project submitted proposes "forming a 10-member transition government and a military council," he said.

Ahmed Ben Helli, deputy head of the Arab League which with Qatar is brokering the meeting, told reporters delegates had been urged to overcome the divisions that have dogged their efforts to unseat Assad.

"The opposition is urged to agree on a leading body which would have credibility among the Syrian people and the international community," Ben Helli said.

This was echoed by Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani who, on opening the meeting, urged Assad's opponents to "unify their ranks and positions and to prioritize the interests of their nation and people over their own personal interests."

Representatives from a number of countries, including the United States, Britain, France, and Germany, are attending the meeting alongside Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi and Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary General Abdul Latif al-Zayani.

Turkey, which has repeatedly called on Assad to step aside, is represented by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu while a leading dissident, former premier Riad Hijab who defected in August, is also attending.

"We will discuss a structure that would unify the Syrian opposition," Hijab told reporters. "We are optimistic."

Among the delegates is Rima Flayhan, representing the Local Coordination Committees of youth groups inside Syria which have been at the vanguard of the uprising.

The meeting began soon after the SNC announced it had overnight elected a new leadership, after being criticized for not being representative enough.

Some 400 SNC members voted in a new Islamist-dominated 41-member general secretariat, which will now be tasked with electing 11 members to appoint a successor to outgoing president Abdel Basset Sayda.

The process has been delayed until Friday.

Before traveling to Doha, Arabi said that preparations must start for a transitional government to be ready when "there are changes on the ground."

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says more than 37,000 people have died since the uprising erupted in March 2011, first as a protest movement and then an armed rebellion after the regime cracked down on demonstrations.

Comments 4
Missing mmckinl 09 November 2012, 02:44

""Some 400 SNC members voted in a new Islamist-dominated 41-member general secretariat ... ""

Read: Sharia government ... ethnic suppression ...

Missing chouf2 09 November 2012, 05:28

Give them a break man ,when it comes to suppression Assad and his gang cant be beaten ..

Missing mmckinl 09 November 2012, 06:45

Just look at Libya ... could well happen to Syria ...

Missing canadianadam 09 November 2012, 07:46

Do you expect them to have a fully running country within a year? Come on. It takes time. I can't stand the skeptics. After the damage these countries have suffered from it may take years but they are moving in the right direction. Down with Assad and Hezbollah.