Guardian: West Warned Gulf States of Arming Syrian Rebels
Local Editor
"Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, is reported to have raised her objections when she was in Riyadh. In recent days, western diplomats say, the Saudis have opted not to mention the subject and are now having second thoughts," it highlighted.
The Guardian, British newspaper, unveiled Friday that Saudi Arabia and Qatar are being urged not to supply weapons to the Syrian rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad regime.
Reflecting the Western fears that "the wealthy Gulf States are preparing to implement a decision to equip the armed opposition," the "Guardian" reported that "the Syrian president's most implacable Arab enemies have been moving towards more direct, if still largely covert, support for the opposition."
However, "they are now under heavy international pressure to hold off," it added.
According to British officials, "Saudis have turned a blind eye as funds raised by Syrian opposition businessmen in the Gulf have been used to buy arms that have been smuggled into Syria by Saudi allies in Lebanon."
"A bigger official effort may be imminent, with one citing reports of Syrian opposition figures meeting Saudi intelligence officers in Europe and Turkey to discuss specific needs," the daily uncovered pointing out that "the decision to arm the rebels has been taken in principle."
The Guardian further added that "Qatar...has drawn up plans for a substantial program to supply tens of millions of dollars worth of sophisticated weapons like anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles."
"This is a major program. They will not do things by halves," said a Doha-based source who was briefed on the plans.
However, the British daily stated that "the plans have been met with both public and private resistance from the international community."
Iraq has been outspoken in opposing any arming of the Syrian rebels. Egypt and Algeria are also against it on the grounds it could fuel a sectarian civil war.
In parallel, the report shed light on the so-called "Friends of Syria's" conference in Istanbul.
"The rift with the Arab hawks was clear at last weekend's Friends of Syria conference in Istanbul. The group reiterated support for a ceasefire and a "Syrian-led" political process. But it refused to endorse Gulf pledges to pay the salaries of the "Free Syrian Army", the main armed wing of the opposition, and to encourage defections."
Moreover, the paper stated that smuggling weapons continue from bordering countries into Syria.
"Little hard information is available about FSA weapons, which are either stolen by defectors or smuggled in from Lebanon, Iraq or Turkey," it clarified.
Syrian sources say "the priority is anti-tank missiles to target the regime's armor."
Gulf agreement to fund the Syrian National Council to pay FSA salaries is seen as providing cover for arms purchases.
But according to one assessment, statements by the Saudis and Qataris ...may have domestic factors at work.
"The Saudi government wants to show people they care about Sunnis being killed in Syria. They don't want a lot of young Saudis going off to wage jihad in Syria like they did in Iraq," Abdelaziz al-Khamis, an independent analyst informed the Guardian.
Still, weapons themselves are unlikely to tip the balance against the regime. "
"The Syrian military is armed with modern weaponry, enough ammunition and better communication systems," commented Emile Hokayem of the International Institute of Strategic Studies. "
"However, as the battles of recent months demonstrate, they [the rebels]are unable to hold ground for long," he concluded
Source: the Guardian, Edited by moqawama.org.
