BENADOR: Syria, framed in Arab Darkness, awaits League's Decision

Bashar al-Assad's fate is linked to the Arab League's decision -and in the world where taqqiya rules, surprises and disloyalty are unsurprising.

As the world discovers that what has been called the "Arab Spring" is not such, but in reality the "Darkness of the Muslim world," each of the countries in the Muslim region is falling to Islamist movements under the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood, sponsors of terrorism and world domination.
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Tense Syria awaits Arab League outcome

(DP-News - agencies)

DAMASCUS- Arab League foreign ministers meet on Sunday to discuss whether to ask the U.N. to help their mission in Syria, which has failed to end a 10-month-old crackdown on unrest that has killed thousands.

The ministerial committee on Syria was to meet in Cairo, where the Arab League has its headquarters, to be briefed by the head of the mission, General Mohammed Ahmed Mustafa al-Dabi.

The ministers will also discuss ways the mission might operate more independently of Syrian authorities.

Speaking on the eve of the meeting, the head of the monitoring operations room at the League's headquarters in Cairo, Adnan al-Khudeir, said the withdrawal of the monitors was not on the agenda and they were continuing their work according to protocols agreed with the Syrian government.

He said in a statement the delegation could only be withdrawn by a decision of Arab League foreign ministers, who had initially agreed the mission's parameters.

Arab League sources said ministers were likely to reaffirm support for the monitors, resisting calls to end what Syrian pro-democracy campaigners say is a toothless mission that buys more time for President Bashar al-Assad to suppress opponents.

Qatar proposes inviting U.N. technicians and human rights experts to help Arab monitors judge whether Syria is honouring its pledge to stop its repression, Arab League sources said. One said it might ask that U.N. staff helping the mission be Arabs.

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani said Syria was not implementing the terms of the Arab League peace plan it agreed, and monitors could not stay in Syria to "waste time." The Syrian army had not withdrawn from cities and there had been no end to the killing, he said.

Syria says it is providing the monitors with all they need and has urged them to show "objectivity and professionalism."

The 22-member Arab League suspended Syria in November after months of silence over the crackdown. But some Arab leaders are uncomfortable about targeting one of their peers given their own restive populations, diplomats say.

The United Nations says more than 5,000 people have been killed in the uprising against President al-Assad`s regime.

A team of Arab League monitors has been in Syria since December 26, trying to assess whether President Bashar al-Assad's regime is complying with a peace accord aimed at ending its deadly crackdown on dissent.

But critics say it has been completely outmaneuvered by the government and has failed to make any progress towards stemming the crackdown. They have called for the mission to pull out.

Western powers that want president Bashar al-Assad to step down to allow for democratic reforms have welcomed the League's toughened stance. Arab states oppose any foreign military intervention like that which helped topple Libya's Muammar Gaddafi last year.


Sunday's meeting comes as heavy clashes broke out before dawn between the Syrian army and deserters, leaving 11 of its soldiers dead, according to human rights activists.

Ten Jordanian monitors had arrived in Damascus on Saturday, Khudeir said, bringing to 153 the number of monitors involved.

Syria bars most independent journalists from the country, making first-hand reporting impossible.

But a BBC Arabic service reporter was allowed to accompany three Arab monitors to a town on the outskirts of Damascus.

It was the first time foreign media were known to have been able to cover the activities of the monitors directly, although media access was a condition stipulated by the Arab League.

The BBC said it had been able to film, unhindered by the security forces.

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BENADOR: What could change if Arab League to increase monitors in Syria?

Photo: Syrians living in Egypt take part in a protest in Cairo on Sunday before a meeting there of Arab League foreign ministers about the league's observer mission in Syria. Credit: Khaled Elfiqi / EPA

REPORTING FROM CAIRO AND BEIRUT — The Arab League is pressing ahead with a heavily criticized observer mission in Syria, saying Sunday it will increase the number of monitors and calling on all sides to halt months of bloodshed.

The announcements came after the head of the observers briefed an Arab League ministerial committee in Cairo on the preliminary findings of the mission, which is monitoring the Damascus government’s compliance with regional demands to end a violent crackdown on a nearly 10-month uprising.

Opposition activists contend that the mission has done little but provide a cover for more violence. Hundreds of people have been killed since Syria agreed Dec. 19 to admit the monitors, according to the Local Coordination Committees, a network of activists that organizes protests and documents the bloodshed. At least 21 more deaths were reported Sunday, the group said.

Members of the Syrian National Council, the most prominent opposition bloc, and other activists have urged the league to concede that it can’t protect civilians and to ask the U.N. Security Council to step in. The Arab Parliament, a league advisory body, has also declared the mission a failure and called for the immediate withdrawal of the observers.

In a statement Sunday, the ministerial committee called on the Syrian government to fulfill its commitments under a league-negotiated peace plan calling for the withdrawal of security forces from cities and residential areas, the release of political prisoners, free access to international media and dialogue with the opposition. The league also reiterated its demand for an end to “all acts of violence from any side.”

League officials have said that the Syrian government has taken steps toward implementing the plan, including releasing a number of detainees, but that snipers continue to threaten civilians.

Qatar’s prime minister, Sheik Hamad ibn Jassim Jaber al Thani, who heads the ministerial committee on Syria, said he was hopeful the observers would be able to complete their task. But he told reporters that "this mission won’t last forever. If the killings continue, then the mission’s presence will be useless.”

Syrian authorities insist they are committed to the league’s plan. They blame the continued bloodshed on what they describe as foreign-backed armed terrorists, who they say have killed more than 2,000 security force members.

What began as a mostly peaceful uprising in March has turned more violent in recent months, with military defectors claiming responsibility for deadly attacks against government forces. In all, more than 5,000 people have been killed, according to U.N. estimates.

Journalists are heavily restricted in Syria, making it difficult to verify the accounts provided by either side.

The Qatari prime minister said the league hopes to increase the number of observers in the country from 165 to 300 within the next few days.

League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby will coordinate with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on ways to strengthen the “technical capacity” of the mission, the committee said, including providing training for the monitors.

International human rights groups have expressed concern that the monitors sent to Syria are not experienced at uncovering or documenting abuses.

Some have also questioned the selection of Sudanese Lt. Gen. Mohammed Ahmed Dabi to lead the mission, noting that he served in key security positions under President Omar Hassan Ahmed Bashir, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands for crimes against humanity in Sudan's Darfur region.

Elaraby has defended Dabi, calling him a “capable military man with a clean reputation.”

Dabi will file a full report on the mission's findings on Jan. 19, the committee said.

[2:55 p.m. Jan. 8: The panel's recommendations did not satisfy activists in some of the country’s major opposition strongholds, which have borne the brunt of the crackdown.

“We don't want new deadlines, additional observers or equipment,” said an activist in the strife-torn city of Homs who goes by the nickname Abu Rami for security sake. “I can hear the gunfire outside. The killings continue. ... We ask [the league] to submit the issue to the [U.N.] Security Council.”

Elaraby said there was nothing to prevent the Security Council from acting. “The Security Council has the authority to intervene in any matter under the sun … without needing us,” he said.

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