Syrian President asks for US aid amid uprising in country - Bloomberg
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (photo: Getty Images)
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is making a last-ditch effort to stay in power, reports Bloomberg. As the rebels approach the capital, he is asking for help from the United States and President-elect Donald Trump through intermediaries.
According to the newspaper, Assad is ordering his army to retreat to protect Damascus, essentially ceding most of the country to the rebels, who have captured major cities such as Aleppo and Hama in an offensive over the past week. At the moment, they are on the outskirts of Homs, less than 100 miles to the north.
At the same time, according to Bloomberg sources, the president is signaling his willingness to strike a deal that would allow him to keep some territory under the control of his army. Or an agreement to guarantee safe departure into exile, if necessary.
The interlocutors said that the United Arab Emirates and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban are Assad's intermediaries in relations with the United States.
In particular, one of the proposals that the Syrian president has made to America through the UAE is that Syria should cease all involvement with Iranian-backed militant groups such as Hezbollah if Western countries influence a cessation of hostilities.
Other people familiar with the plan say that Assad sent a senior Christian leader to meet with Orban to convey what he considers a threat to the existence of Syria's Christian minority if Islamist rebels win. According to the sources, Orban was supposed to convey this idea to the newly elected US President Trump.
Officials in the administration of US President Joe Biden believe that the regime of President Bashar al-Assad could fall in a few days. However, opinions differ on whether his death, if it happens, will be the final solution to the conflict.
