The regime of Syrian president Bashar Assad angrily rejected an Arab League proposal on Monday that would have seen Assad step down and be replaced by his deputy, declaring the idea to be "flagrant interference" in Syria’s “internal affairs.” The plan was hammered out during an Arab League meeting on Sunday in Cairo. Despite the regime’s rejection, Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, who has taken the most aggressive stance towards Assad since the outbreak of the revolt against him early in 2011, told reporters after the meeting that the League would forward the plan to the UN Security Council and ask for its endorsement. Also on Sunday, Saudi Arabia announced that it would withdraw its observers from Syria, declaring that the Arab League monitoring mission, which was renewed last Thursday, had failed.
In related news, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) of Iran admitted on Sunday that the Lebanese Shi’ite terror militia Hezbollah, a proxy of the IRGC, had been sent to Syria to protect Iranian assets in the country. The admission was widely interpreted as a sign that Teheran believes Assad is in serious trouble, as key areas of Syria, including neighborhoods in Damascus, have recently slipped from government control, taken over by various rebel elements including the Moslem Brotherhood and terrorist groups with links to Al Qaida and other factions.
The IRGC official also declared that Israel is preparing to invade Syria through the Bekaa valley in Lebanon, but that Russia and China had pledged forces to defend Syria against any outside intervention. Russia also signed a deal in December to supply Assad with 36 Yakovlev Yak-130 Mitten fighter planes.
Meanwhile, opposition groups reported that several dozen more people were killed in Syria over the weekend, adding to the nearly 7,500 variously reported casualties since the revolt began last March.
