The beliefs and leadership style of Mouaz al-Khateeb are likely
to resonate with major segments of the population in Syria, including key
figures in the country’s minority communities. Moreover, and as a respected cleric,
he has a certain moral authority to occasionally challenge certain popular
stands on issues and to advocate more pragmatic policies. But, without major
backing from the international community to the Coalition, and through the Coalition
to the rebels, Mouaz’s appeal and legitimacy will prove ephemeral. The priority
for the Coalition at this stage should be to identify key defectors and rebel leaders
that can be supported and to take control of all border checkpoints to ensure
that distribution networks are not coopted by extremist elements. The sooner
this is done the sooner members of the international community will be able to
make a decision on backing the Coalition.
Tuesday November
13, 2012
Today’s
Death Toll: 172.
The Breakdown: Toll includes 10 children and 12 women: 109 in
Damascus and Suburbs (22 in Utaya Massacre), 20 in Idlib, 19 in Aleppo, 8 in
Daraa, 6 in Homs, 5 in Deir Ezzor, 4 in Hama and 1 in Raqqah. Other Developments: The LCC also documented 217
points of random shelling by regime forces: 167 by artillery, 29 by mortar, 27 by
missiles, 17 by fighter jets, and 5 by Thermobaric Bombs.
Rebels clashed with regime loyalists in 143 points (LCC).
News
Syria:
A Priority for New Opposition Group Curb, Condemn, Investigate and
Punish Abuses by All Factions (Human Rights Watch)
Special
Reports
At first glance, the brightness of the
colors might just be enough to fool the casual viewer. But this abstract scene
in "Play in the City" isn't a cheerful one. Pain infuses this
painting.
In the Kurdish areas of Syria, the PKK
controls the roads, has taken over government institutions and has a good hold
on everyday life. It could be another 30 years before the PKK holds similar
powers in Turkey. Now they have the opportunity to show the Kurds and the world
that they are truly fighting for Kurdish rights… There are other Kurdish
political parties and youth movements in Syria and they too have their ambitions.
But if the PKK does not give these groups breathing space, if it bullies them,
closes their offices or detains their members at checkpoints, then what is the
guarantee that the PKK will run the Kurdish areas of Turkey any better in the
future?
One of the few international aid
agencies operating in Syria says that at least 2.5m people are now displaced
within the country. The figure from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent more than
doubles previous estimates. The United Nations refugee agency says that an
additional 700,000 people have fled to neighbouring countries. Many risk their
lives seeking sanctuary - in August, 60 people drowned making the journey from
Syria to Europe when their boat overturned. One survivor, who did not want to
be identified, has been recounting the tragedy to the BBC's Fergal Keane.
For the past 20 months, a barrage of
footage from Syria’s catastrophic civil war has blasted out from activists
inside the country, day after day, hour after hour, shot on mobile phones and
uploaded to YouTube, unedited, unfiltered and intensely violent. Designed more
to push hesitant world leaders into action than as an exercise in journalism,
most of the pictures show dead or severely injured civilians and fighters, and are
so gruesome that they are virtually unwatchable.
Western powers may have learned some
painful lessons from their failed attempts to pick the leadership of a
post-Saddam Iraq, but the dangers posed by a protracted civil war that has
already spilled across Syria’s borders appears to have prompted a new
willingness to roll the dice.
Syrian Volunteers Exhibit Their
Humanity, Despite International Politicizing of Emergency Aid.
As the Assad regime's increasingly
precarious military situation becomes irreversible, outside assistance could
help deter Damascus from extreme escalation.
“When I ask myself what is the American
national interest in Syria, it is certainly in our national interest that the
support of the Shia in Lebanon via Syria be interrupted, and that Syria not
become a base in the projection of Iranian power,” Mr. Kissinger said. “So from
that point of view an Assad victory in the civil war would be against the
American national interest. And from that point of view some arming of the
rebels is desirable.”
Mouaz al-Khatib, a religious leader
and a voice of moderation, has been chosen to lead the Syrian National
Coalition for Opposition and Revolutionary Forces. Supporters hope the new
coalition can provide a conduit for foreign aid.
Ammar Abdulhamid & Khawla
Yusuf: The
Shredded Tapestry: The State of Syria Today
While many are hailing
new opposition leader, Mouaz Al-Khateeb’s moderate credentials, some are already
questioning
them. This is indeed a legitimate thing to do. But for a culture steeped in
confessional prejudice, moderation does not mean complete lack of prejudice,
but the ability to rise above it and advocate policies that can work for all
communities. Mouaz might have made, at one point or another in the course of
his public career, or even recently, statements that smack of anti-Semitism or
confessional bias, but his entire public career so far has been a constant
attempt to try to rise above prejudice and reach out to the other sides of the
equation, while maintaining influence and relevance in his own camp. It is
people like Mouaz who represent our hope for a better future at this particular
juncture in our history. On account of his lingering prejudices, he still
retains relevance in his own camp (Islamist and pragmatic Sunnis), and because
of his sincere attempts to rise above these prejudices, he managed to gain
respect and relevance in other camps as well (minority communities, especially
Christians and Kurds). That’s what makes him a potentially unifying figure. Trying
to fault Mouaz for making statements that reveals some of the prejudices that
we all grew up with, while neglecting a long career of trying to reach out to
the other sides, with some success as one can judge from the reaction of many
minority figures to his election, is to engage in a zero-sum game. There is
simply no strong and organized constituency for the unbiased leader at this
stage, there is only the potential thereof. Transforming this potential into a
reality will take decades. People like Mouaz will have to play a critical role
in the transition process, if it is to be successful.
(For those interested in historical comparisons and literature,
Mouaz’s position is comparable to that of the Roman
Prefect in Rudyard Kipling’s story The Church at Antioch. Since his main
interest is to bring back order, his personal prejudices seem irrelevant).
Indeed, people like me, that is, people who, in some circles in the
West, are often hailed as “moderates,” are actually far from it within the
context of our prevailing social and political culture. We are indeed radicals.
We have long made a radical departure from most if not all
prevailing norms in our societies, to the point that we are now, and for the
most part, politically irrelevant and unpopular. But, while our break
from the prevailing culture did not stop us from understanding and explaining
it, or even from contributing to the making of the revolution itself, we are
not in a position to benefit politically from that, as evidenced by the ability
of Islamist and leftist elements to completely marginalize us from all ongoing
political processes at this stage, despite our stronger connections with
western governments and international organizations. Nor will we be given
credit anytime soon for our contributions to the revolutionary upheavals, and
they are numerous despite the small size of our popular base. That’s why our
activities at the Tharwa Foundation, for instance, were meant more to inspire
imitation than acquire followers. That was the only way we could influence the
processes on the ground.
And although some of us might make better technocrats than our
political rivals, it’s highly unlikely that any of us will be entrusted with
such positions. Ideology will continue to trump national interest in the
political calculations of opposition groups for a long while to come. We are
not going to get beyond ideology unless people like Mouaz are successful. Their
task is a daunting one, and liberal democracy activists can only support from a
distance. Personally, I have long become accustomed to this kind of
arrangements.
Of note in this regard as well, are the observations made by my friend,
Amr Al-Azm: “The
Formation of Syria’s National Coalition: An Assessment and Analysis.”
Video Highlights
The pounding of Damascene suburbs continues: Saqba http://youtu.be/iuy21Qz80x8 MiGs and
Sukhoys take part in the action http://youtu.be/J_Idg8nPtMA
, http://youtu.be/ouGYqOw6lkI Yalda
was also targeted http://youtu.be/MKOys_M5HO0
, http://youtu.be/7rGXlsmSdvc And Kafar
Batna (where the cameraman was almost killed when the bomb dropped next to
his position) http://youtu.be/C8YOZ6zBQaM
These tanks seeing entering into the Tadamon neighborhood in
Damascus City are believed to be recent imports from Russia. They are quite
different from tanks that have been deployed before http://youtu.be/ayfLHFSr4_w And the
pounding begins http://youtu.be/74J3E9Ku3gU
Sounds of clashes in Qaboun Neighborhood in Damascus City http://youtu.be/ltlZfja5qVQ
MiGs also targeted the suburbs of Moadamia http://youtu.be/m52VtwriBOQ and Daraya
http://youtu.be/Qoi4JPc4Vew , http://youtu.be/K1JIxolln5I in the western
parts of Damascus. In Daraya, the bombardment kills the members of an
entire family http://youtu.be/7aQi_eAkKk8
The Kurdish-majority town of Ras-Al-Ain (Seri Kanye) on the
borders with Turkey and which has recently been taken over by Islamist rebels
have also been targeted by MiGs for the second straight day http://youtu.be/JyL4FZgr4dY , http://youtu.be/UYU2kUw0wT8 , http://youtu.be/vt5czEUWecI Locals are
sent scurrying in all directions http://youtu.be/sRVnSPnOsI0
Locals collect the body parts of the victims http://youtu.be/L1Od6yAZNn4 Impact of
the pounding http://youtu.be/IGpG0uA6138
MiGs also targeted the town of Alboukamal, on the border with
Iraq http://youtu.be/O7WoxHFrOlA , http://youtu.be/I4BwoM5xNno , http://youtu.be/MKMld8M9fBU
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