Syrian opposition furious at US revamping initiative
The foreign-based Syrian opposition began a four-day meeting in Doha, Qatar Monday, Nov. 5, to strengthen its standing as the main opposition roof organization after it was dismissed by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as not representing the Syrian groups fighting Bashar Assad. Riad Seif, leader of the Syrian National Initiative, urged the addition of new political factions. It was the exiled leaders’ first attempt to blend its efforts with the rebels’ military campaign and ward off Clinton’s demand for a new, more representative, opposition coalition. Some of the leaders present grumbled: “The US should decide once and for all whether it backs the anti-Assad uprising or not.”