Syrian Rebels Wrangle over New Leadership

Local Editor

Sharp disagreements arose Sunday on the first day of Syrian opposition talks meant to forge a more cohesive leadership, supported by the US and Arab Gulf kingdoms.
The main opposition group, the so-called "Syrian National Council" [SNC], balked at a US-backed plan that would largely sideline it to make room in a new leadership council for fighters and activists inside Syria.

At the Doha conference, the SNC will decide whether to accept a plan proposed by a prominent dissident, Riad Seif, to set up a new leadership group of about 50 members. The SNC would receive some 15 seats, meaning its influence would be diluted, while military commanders and local leaders in rebel-held areas would win wider representation.
Seif said his plan enjoyed broad international backing and called it a stepping stone to more robust foreign aid.

For his part, SNC chief Abdel-Basset Sayda dismissed Seif's optimism, saying he and others in the SNC no longer trust promises of international support linked to restructuring the opposition.

"We faced this situation before, when we formed the SNC [last year]," he said, and noted "There were promises like that, but the international community in fact did not give us the support needed for the SNC to do its job."

Sayda said the "SNC believes it deserves at least 40 percent of the seats should it decide to join the new group."
He further suggested "the organization may have decided it's under too much pressure to reject the plan entirely."

Source: News Agencies, Edited by moqawama.org