As the death toll in the Syrian uprising approaches 3,000— with who knows how many other thousands imprisoned and tortured by the Baathist regime– and as the European Union demanded his resignation, President Assad has found solace and succor from a solidarity visit by officials of “leftist” Latin American governments.
Syria’s foreign minister warned the international community Sunday not to recognize a new umbrella council formed by the opposition, threatening “tough measures” against any country that does so.
Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem did not specify what measures Damascus might take but alluded later in his comments to attacks on embassies. Addressing reports that protesters had broken into Syria’s embassy to Germany, al-Moallem said that countries which did not protect Syrian missions could find their own embassies treated in the same way.
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Syria’s top diplomat was speaking during a joint news conference with a delegation from the left-leaning ALBA bloc of mostly Latin American countries, which includes Cuba, Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia. The ALBA officials were visiting Damascus to express solidarity with Syria and met Sunday with President Bashar Assad.
The delegation included Venezuela’s Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro and Cuba’s Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez.
This one’s for you, Bashar.
A handful of counterrevolutionaries and dupes of imperialism turned out in the Syrian city of Qamishli Saturday to denounce the regime at the funeral of assassinated Kurdish opposition leader Mashaal Tammo.
Activists said at least five people were killed when security forces opened fire on the funeral, risking an even broader confrontation with a Kurdish community the government had tried to avoid provoking.
Meanwhile Syrian opponents of the regime continue to burn Chinese and Russian flags to protest those governments’ continued support for Assad, while displaying the flags of countries taking their side.
