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IN DENIAL: Barbara Walters' Interview with Syria's President Bashar al-Assad
07-Dec-2011
In Interview with ABC’s Barbara Walters, Syria's President Bashar al-Assad say’s 'There Was No Command to Kill'. (For More on this Story including Walter’s Views on Interview Go to ABC’s Here)
Barbara Walters discusses brutal crackdown of protests with Syria's président :
(NOTE : TO WATCH DOUBLE CLICK HERE)
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THE ASSAD ENIGMA :
From Respectable Surgeon to ‘bloodthirsty’ dictator
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Barbara from "The View" program went to Syria ( few years ago):
Asma Elassad Syria's first lady on Gaza by CNN (Jan 14, 2009):
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NO REMORSE , NO GUILT
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Syria's Bashar al-Assad 'feels no guilt' over crackdown (bbc)
Syria's president has said that he feels no guilt about his crackdown on a 10-month uprising, despite reports of brutality by security forces.
In an interview with the US network ABC, Bashar al-Assad said he had given no orders for violence to be used against protesters but admitted "mistakes"were made.
He said he did not own the security forces or the country.
At least 4,000 people have been killed since the uprising began, the UN says.
However, Mr Assad said the UN was not credible.
Syria blames the violence on "armed criminal gangs".
The US later rejected President Assad's assertions that he did not order the killing of protesters.
"It is just not credible," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.
"The United States and many, many other nations around the world who have come together to condemn the atrocious violence in Syria perpetrated by the Assad regime know exactly what's happening and who is responsible."
Mr Assad's interview comes a day after the US announced that its ambassador in Syria, Robert Ford, would return to Damascus after he was withdrawn in October because of security concerns.
France's ambassador returned on Monday.
'Big difference'
Responding to questions from veteran presenter Barbara Walters about the brutality of the crackdown, Mr Assad said he did not feel any guilt.
"I did my best to protect the people, so I cannot feel guilty," he said. "You feel sorry for the lives that has [sic] been lost. But you don't feel guilty - when you don't kill people."
"We don't kill our people… no government in the world kills its people, unless it's led by a crazy person," he added.
The security forces were not his, nor did he command them, the Syrian president said.
"There was no command, to kill or to be brutal," he said.
"I don't own them, I am president, I don't own the country so they are not my forces."
Instead he blamed the violence on criminals, religious extremists and terrorists sympathetic to al-Qaeda, who he said were mingling with peaceful protesters.
He said most ofthose killed were from government supporters, with 1,100 soldiers and police among the dead.
Those members of the security forces who had exceeded their powers had been punished, he said.
"Every 'brute reaction' was by an individual, not by an institution, that's what you have to know," he said.
"There is a difference between having a policy to crack down and between having some mistakes committed by some officials. There is a big difference."
When challenged about reports of house-to-house arrests, including of children, Mr Assad said the sources could not be relied upon.
"We have to be here to see. We don't see this. So we cannot depend on what you hear,"he said.
The United Nations, which has said the Syrian government committed crimes against humanity, was not credible, Mr Assad said.
He described Syria's membership of the UN as "a game we play".
Asked if he feared sharing the fate of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi or ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Mr Assad said the only thing he was afraid of was losing the support of his own people.
Recommended Reading:
Bashar al-Assad: Syria's unintended president (CNN, Wire Staff)
U.N.puts death toll at 4,000 in Syria as pressures rise by Mohamed Fadel Fahmy, (CNN)
Related Blogs on Syria and ME Crisis:
Jordan's King Abdullah Calls On Syria's President Assad to Step Down
Jordan's King Warns: 'No one has any idea what to do about Syria'
Jordan King in talks with Mahmoud Abbas on Palestinian statehood bid
STUBBORN WALLS: Ben Gurion, Hussein, Nasser interviews on ME Peace Process
Related Blogs on ‘Barbara Walter’s Interviews’ :
Barbara Walters On Interviewing Muammar Gaddafi in 1989
pictory: Shah Interview with Barbara Walters and US Networks (1974-77)
A QUEEN's LOYALTY: Barbara Walters Shares Shahbanou Farah's concerns for President Mobarak's Family
WOMEN KNOW YOUR LIMITS: The Shah's Post Mortem Apologies to Barbara Walters and Oriana Fallaci
PRINCE OF PERSIA: Barbara Walters Interview with Crown Prince Reza (2002)
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Free Syrian Army to Jeremy Bowens: "We're going to win this war"
by Darius Kadivar on Thu Jan 26, 2012 03:33 PM PSTDefiant in Douma: We want Assad dead (bbc, VIDEO)
Violence between troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and defectors from the Free Syrian Army flared on Thursday, as Syrian rebels continued their campaign against the government.
The fighting centred on Douma, which was one of the first areas to join the uprising when it began last March.
With the help of local activists on Wednesday night, the BBC's Middle East Editor Jeremy Bowen visited the flashpoint.
Arab League Call for UN backing on Syria plan
by Darius Kadivar on Thu Jan 26, 2012 08:55 AM PSTCall for UN backing on Syria plan (bbc)
The Arab League is to ask the United Nations Security Council to back its plan to end the violence in Syria.
Red Crescent official killed in Syria in Fresh Violence
by Darius Kadivar on Wed Jan 25, 2012 01:57 PM PST(CNN) -- A Syrian Red Crescent official was gunned down Wednesday, and a major city endured a security offensive as more violence broke out in Syria.
Abdulrazak Jabero Hisham, the head of the humanitarian organization's branch in Idlib province, was shot dead by a "terrorist group," the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency said. The report said he was shot in the head.
Hisham Hassan of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva, Switzerland, didn't have details about the killing, but he said the man was shot on the road between Damascus and Idlib.
In the flashpoint city of Hama, security forces and pro-government militias assaulted neighborhoods overnight, an opposition activist group reported Wednesday.Used to be AP & AFP and CNN, now we have DK! :-)
by Disenchanted on Tue Jan 24, 2012 03:25 PM PSTLive updates around the clock! :-)
Armed activists encroach on Assad's stronghold
by Darius Kadivar on Tue Jan 24, 2012 03:22 PM PSTGaining ground (BBC Video)
Newsnight's Tim Whewell has just returned from Syria where he managed to give his government minders the slip and meet armed opponents of President Bashar al-Assad regime established inside the Syrian capital.
Jeremy Bowens: Syria Homs 'looking like a city at war'
by Darius Kadivar on Tue Jan 24, 2012 01:32 AM PSTHoms 'looking like a city at war' (bbc Video)
Syria has rejected a plan by the Arab League for a new government of national unity to end the months of violence.
The proposal, which would require President Assad to engage in proper dialogue with the opposition, has been dismissed by the regime as 'blatant interference'.
There were more deaths today in the city of Homs which has seen some of fiercest fighting.
The BBC's Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen, was taken there by government officials.
Syria rejects Arab League plan for Assad to step down
by Darius Kadivar on Mon Jan 23, 2012 01:21 AM PSTSyria rejects power transfer call (bbc)
Syria has rejected an Arab League call for President Bashar al-Assad to hand over power to his deputy.
The league, meeting in Cairo, also called on Syria to form a national unity government with the opposition within two months.
A government official called the plan "flagrant interference" in Syria's internal affairs, state TV said.
The UN says more than 5,000 people have died as a result of the crackdown on protests since they began last March.
The league called on both sides to end the bloodshed.
The government in Damascus says it is fighting "terrorists and armed gangs" and claims that some 2,000 members of the security forces have been killed.
The Full Unedited Interview with Asad (in 4 parts)
by Joubin on Sun Jan 22, 2012 03:00 PM PSTpart 1: //youtu.be/c7GIuKalnAo
part 2: //youtu.be/j9eCpO-BCU4
part 3: //youtu.be/wazgaAVewgI
part 4: //youtu.be/esDKGuvYh2c
What I truly despise, Dariush Kadviar, is the (media) games people play knowing full well the human and national cost involved.
"The end justifies the means" is the morally bankrupt philosophy of the creatures that have been feeding on the people of Iran Zameen. Creatures that lack the definitive essence of humanity: empathy.
& Salaam.
-
Think Clearly, Speak Straight, and Act Decisively. Only then will you be an Iranian.
Syria unrest: Arab League urges Assad to reform
by Darius Kadivar on Sun Jan 22, 2012 02:23 PM PSTArab League in Syria reform plea (bbc)
The Arab League has outlined a series of reforms it wants Syria to undertake to end the violence in the country.
After a meeting in Cairo, the league called on the Syrian authorities to form a national unity government to include the opposition in two months.
The league also reiterated its demands that both sides end the bloodshed.
Earlier, Saudi Arabia said it was pulling out of the league's monitoring mission in Syria because Damascus had broken promises on peace initiatives.
The mission is due to be extended for another month, but analysts say the Saudi decision has thrown its longer-term future into serious doubt.
Saudi Arabia is one of the key funders of the league's projects, but the monitors have been criticised for failing to stop the violence.
Bashar falls back on father's brutal methods say's Jeremy Bowen
by Darius Kadivar on Sun Jan 22, 2012 11:00 AM PSTBowen: Assad as father's son (bbc)
Someone has pinned a poster up at the foreign passports window at the Syrian border post with Lebanon. It shows a dove of peace, surrounded by guns, each labelled with the name of a foreign news broadcaster - including the BBC.
The dove is surrounded, and under fire. But the bullets are bouncing off its feathers, which are the colour of the Syrian flag - white, red, green and black.
As usual, I have had nothing but courtesy since I arrived in Syria, even though the official line here, set by President Bashar al-Assad, is that its troubles are caused by a foreign conspiracy aided and abetted by the international media.
The other day the BBC went on a government trip to Deraa, the town where the uprising started in March last year.
We managed to leave our escort of secret policemen to have a quick talk with a group of defiant young men.
They said they lived in a street of martyrs, where 18 had been killed in the last 10 months. As we left them they were chanting "Bashar, we want to hang you".
Saudis to quit Syria monitoring
by Darius Kadivar on Sun Jan 22, 2012 10:32 AM PSTSaudis to quit Syria monitoring (bbc)
Saudi Arabia announces it is to pull out of the Arab League mission in Syria, and calls on the international community to put more pressure on the isolated regime.
Syria unrest: Arabs League to discuss fate of mission
by Darius Kadivar on Sat Jan 21, 2012 12:29 AM PSTArabs consider Syria mission fate (bbc)
The Arab League is beginning a series of discussions over whether to extend its controversial monitoring mission to Syria, amid ongoing violence.
A report by the head of the mission will be discussed by a panel in Cairo on Saturday, before Arab League foreign ministers make a decision on Sunday.
The 165-strong mission expired on Thursday with no sign of a halt to the government's crackdown on protesters.
Analysts say the league is expected to renew the mission for another month.
Violence across Syria continued on Friday, with activists saying that said seven people were killed by security forces.
The UN Security Council was told earlier this month that 400 people had been killed during the monitors' first 10 days in Syria.
The UN had previously said that more than 5,000 had died since protests against President Bashar al-Assad erupted last March.
Arab League mission to Syria ends
by Darius Kadivar on Fri Jan 20, 2012 04:07 PM PSTArab League mission to Syria ends (cnn)
(CNN) -- The Arab League was negotiating an extension of its fact-finding mission in Syria Thursday, with its members due to report over the weekend on what they have witnessed of a months-long government crackdown on protests.
Ambassador Adnan Al Khudeir, the Cairo-based head of the monitoring operation, said the league and the Syrian government were negotiating an extension to their mandate, which was scheduled to end Thursday.
A senior Arab League official, who could not be named because he was not authorized to speak on the matter, said the monitors would remain in Syria while the issue was discussed -- and that all signs pointed to an extension being agreed to by both sides.
U.S. considers closing its embassy in Syria as protests persist
by Darius Kadivar on Fri Jan 20, 2012 04:05 PM PSTSyria seethes as protests persist (cnn)
Damascus, Syria (CNN) -- The United States is considering closing its embassy in Damascus, Syria, because of security concerns, the State Department said Friday.
"While no decision has been made, we have serious concerns about the deteriorating security situation in Damascus, including the recent spate of car bombs, and about the safety and security of embassy personnel," it said in a written statement.
"We have requested that the government of Syria take additional security measures to protect our embassy, and the Syrian government is considering that request. We have also advised the Syrian government that unless concrete steps are taken in the coming days we may have no choice but to close the mission," the State Department said.
Closing the embassy would effectively severe any remaining diplomatic relations between Syria and the United States.
Anti-government protesters Call for Syria detainees' release
by Darius Kadivar on Fri Jan 20, 2012 02:13 PM PSTCall for Syria detainees' release(bbc)
Anti-government protesters take to the streets of Syria in support of thousands of people detained by the government in the 10-month uprising.
It's finished, Assad won
by Rea on Thu Jan 19, 2012 04:08 PM PSTHonestly, I can't say I wish the opposition won. For who was the opposition ?
Dear DK: Thanks for
by vildemose on Thu Jan 19, 2012 10:27 AM PSTDear DK: Thanks for explaining the details of the alleged support. I'm convinced that Bashar will not leave without outside intervention even if he has to kill half of the population. He takes his orders from Khamnei. Big mistake...
A state of war only serves as an excuse for domestic tyranny.--Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn.
vildemose Jan BBC's Jeremy Bowen's take is slightly different
by Darius Kadivar on Thu Jan 19, 2012 10:12 AM PSTIt is true that the population is divided but the 50 % to which they refer is an accumulation of different minorities ( Alaouits, Kurds, Christian Syrians etc ...) who each have different reasons to support the Assad regime yet are divided amongst themselves.
Their Support for Assad is not unconditional but based on the Fear of seeing the Muslim brotherhood take over or seeing Assad's regime be replaced by some Military establishment which would take power out of the hands of Syria's civil society.
But Jeremy Bowens concludes that most people fear the regime once victorious would display even more brutality as during Hafez Al Assad's rule where 46 000 or so Syrians were crushed without the slightest clemency.
Bachar is of the same temperament. The Regime's Political future is doomed but it won't go without outside Pressure. That's where Jeremy Bowens ( who also covered the events in Libya) claims that the tipping point may actually take place if the regime suffers an economic blow thanks to Western and regional sanctions imposed not only by the Western Powers but also by Turkey and the Arabs included.
In other words the drastic economy can tempt more and more people to join the opposition to the regime despite their hesitations including amongst the deemed 50 % ...
So the Real Question is whether or not the Western Powers as well as the regional powers ( Arab League) will maintain a united front when it comes to Sanctioning the regime ? ...
The same is true regarding Iran !
dear Darius: I heard on
by vildemose on Thu Jan 19, 2012 09:00 AM PSTdear Darius: I heard on CNN that 50% of the population is against this uprising because they want to avoid a civil war. However, that is what they are going to get with or without help from outside forces.
A state of war only serves as an excuse for domestic tyranny.--Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn.
Syrian regime 'bleeding to death' say's Resigned Monitor
by Darius Kadivar on Thu Jan 19, 2012 08:58 AM PSTSyrian regime 'bleeding to death' (AUDIO, BBC)
Arab League monitors are to issue their report on Syria, after a one-month deployment of around 100 monitors.
The Today programme's Zubeida Malik spoke to one monitor, Anwar Malek, who resigned mid-way through the mission.
And Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen gives his impression of the mood in Damascus.
Hear an extended version of the interview with Anwar Malek here
Arab observers to report on Syria
by Darius Kadivar on Thu Jan 19, 2012 08:56 AM PSTArab observers to report on Syria (bbc)
The mandate of the Arab League observer mission in Syria is due to expire, a month after it arrived to verify the implementation of a peace plan.
Syrian troops 'ousted from town' say's opposition
by Darius Kadivar on Thu Jan 19, 2012 02:22 AM PSTSyrian troops 'ousted from town' (cnn)
(CNN) -- Syrian activists say opposition forces have wrested control of the town of Zabadani from government troops, but the authorities' tanks remain perched on its outskirts.
Darius jaan by EVERONE, I mean US, Israel, Russia and EU.
by Esfand Aashena on Wed Jan 18, 2012 07:33 AM PSTThey're all huffing and puffing about war. Though the sanctions are tightening.
Everything is sacred
Esfand Aashena Nope NOT Everyone
by Darius Kadivar on Wed Jan 18, 2012 07:32 AM PSTHowever Your Joon Joony incompetent Nobel Peace Prize Fart heads maybe indeed ...
FART ALERT: Nobel Peace Prize Committee Struggles to Choose 2011 Laureate
Darius jaan when it comes to Iran, EVERYONE huffs and puffs!
by Esfand Aashena on Wed Jan 18, 2012 06:08 AM PSTEverything is sacred
Pedar Sookhteha Russians Sure Know their Priorities ...
by Darius Kadivar on Wed Jan 18, 2012 05:08 AM PSTPedar Sookhteha !
Just after Warning Against Strikes on Iran
by Darius Kadivar on Wed Jan 18, 2012 05:06 AM PSTRussia warns against Iran strike(bbc)
The Russian foreign minister has warned that a Western military strike against Iran would be "a catastrophe".
Russia threatens Syria resolution
by Darius Kadivar on Wed Jan 18, 2012 05:04 AM PSTRussia threatens Syria resolution (bbc)
Russia's foreign minister has said it will block any move at the UN to impose sanctions on Syria or authorise the use of force against it.
'Ceasefire' in Syria border town
by Darius Kadivar on Wed Jan 18, 2012 01:44 AM PST'Ceasefire' in Syria border town (bbc)
Syrian troops who were attacking rebels in the town of Zabadani, close to the capital Damascus, have agreed to a ceasefire, an opposition leader says.
Syria rejects intervention call
by Darius Kadivar on Tue Jan 17, 2012 04:10 PM PSTSyria rejects intervention call (bbc)
Syria's government rejects a call from Qatar for Arab troops to be deployed in the country to end the deadly crackdown on protesters.