'Disappointed' Syria Opposition Thinks U.S. Congress Will OK Strike, Damascus Says Obama 'Hesitant, Confused'
Syria's main opposition bloc said Sunday it was disappointed with U.S. President Barack Obama's decision to seek approval from Congress for action against the regime, but said it believed lawmakers would OK a strike, as Damascus described the U.S. leader as "hesitant" and "confused."
"We had a feeling of disappointment. We were expecting things to be quicker, that a strike would be imminent... But we believe Congress will approve a strike," said Samir Nashar, a top official at the Syrian National Coalition.
To general surprise, Obama on Saturday postponed threatened missile strikes against Syria that the world had thought were imminent, opting instead for the risky gamble of getting Congress approval.
This effectively pushes back any military action aimed at punishing the regime over an alleged poison gas attack until at least September 9, when U.S. lawmakers return from their summer recess.
Nashar said the coalition was confident that Arab foreign ministers who meet Sunday in Cairo would give "very strong support" to U.S.-led military action.
"The Turkish position is also very important. Washington needs this support," the Istanbul-based official said.
"The coalition will get in touch with Arab countries and Turkey so that they cooperate as much as possible with the United States," he said.
"We will try to push these countries to take part in the military operation, which will greatly alleviate the suffering of Syrians."
Later on Sunday, the Coalition pleaded with the U.S. Congress to "make the right choice" and approve the military strike.
In a statement, it called on "members of the U.S. Congress to make the right choice and support the administration's efforts to stop the (Bashar)Assad killing machine."
"If the free world fails to respond to such an outrageous breach of international norms, dictators around the world will be encouraged in their efforts to follow the example set by Assad," the opposition group warned.
Meanwhile, Damascus said Sunday that Obama has grown "hesitant" and "confused."
"President Obama was clearly hesitant, disappointed and confused when he spoke yesterday," Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Muqdad told reporters, in the Syrian regime's first reaction to Obama's announcement.
Muqdad also slammed France's government as "irresponsible" and accused it of trying to dupe its own people over its support of a military strike on Damascus over the alleged gas attack.
"There is a responsible government in Syria but there is no responsible government in Paris," he said. French political leaders had "falsified facts and supported organizations like al-Qaida."
"We believe the (French) president and his foreign minister are deceiving the French people to justify the failed policies against Syria, and they will not succeed," he told reporters in Damascus.
Muqdad urged U.S. lawmakers to show "wisdom" in their vote on military action.
"We ask the U.S. Congress to show wisdom," he said, once again denying his regime was behind the alleged poison gas attack that precipitated American and French calls for military action.
"Chemical weapons have been used by al-Qaida and those who are in their pay thanks to what Turkey, Saudi Arabia and other countries supply to these terrorists," he said, using the government's term for anti-regime rebels.
Source: Agence France Presse
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