VIDEO: APExpress 4 – 1/10/2012 8:17:00 AM – AP-APTN-1230: ++Syria Assad 3 // ReutersUS 3 – 1/10/2012 7:09:00 AM – BC-WORLD-JAN10-TURKEY-AS
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Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has vowed to crackdown on “terrorists” with an “iron hand” and is blaming a “foreign conspiracy” for the 10-month-old anti-government uprising in his country.
From the Syrian capital, Damascus, Mr. Assad made a rare 100-minute address Tuesday on state television. He praised the work of his security forces and said he had not ordered them to shoot at civilians.
“Our priority now is to regain security which our country has enjoyed for decades. This can only be achieved by hitting the terrorists with an iron hand. There will be no leniency for those who are using weapons to kill our civilians. We will not be lenient with those who work with outsiders against their nation and people.”
The Syrian government has accused “armed terrorists” of driving the revolt against Mr. Assad's 11-year autocratic rule.
The embattled president again said he will not step down until the Syrian people want him to leave.
In his speech, he promised to let Syrians vote in March on a new constitution that would focus on a multi-party system. He said parliamentary elections will follow and could be held as soon as May.
Syrian activists watching the address on television in Turkey said they doubted Mr. Assad will carry out any of his promises.
“All his speech is a kind of propaganda and a kind of lie. He wants to say to the international community and to Arab world that he is good and he is going to change, even [though] he [will] not. He will not do anything.''
Mr. Assad has yet to fulfill his promise to end a bloody crackdown that the United Nations says has left at least 5,000 people dead. The Syrian government says 2,000 security personnel have been killed in the violence.
The U.N. Security Council said on Tuesday that 400 people have been killed since the Arab League observers arrived on December 26. The Arab bloc is conducting a widely-criticized observer mission in Syria to monitor Mr. Assad's compliance with a plan to end violence against anti-government protesters.
A top U.N. official told the 15-member council in a meeting that about 40 people are being killed each day.
Activists say at least 10 people were shot dead by Syrian security forces in the northeastern city of Deir el-Zour on Tuesday, despite the presence of Arab League monitors.
President Assad, for his part, criticized the work of the Arab League in his speech.
Also on Tuesday, Kuwait's state-run KUNA news agency said “unknown protesters” attacked an Arab League team in the northern Syrian city of Latakia, injuring two Kuwaiti military officers.
Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi condemned the attack, and said he holds the Syrian government responsible for protecting the observers.
Reuters reports that the Syrian government responded, saying it is continuing to provide security for the Arab monitors and that it condemns any acts that inhibit their work.
Arab League foreign ministers decided Sunday to increase the number of monitors in Syria, despite criticism from opposition activists and rights groups who say the mission has failed to bring any halt to the violence.
Analysts say Syria has crossed a line of no return, but that Mr. Assad will appear confident, as he did in his speech, until the end in order to prove his strength.
“I think that we are seeing a gradual build-up of an international consensus on Syria and this is probably what is frightening the regime most and why it needs to show strength.”
While Mr. Assad appeared confident, Syria's neighbors say that his time is limited and that they are preparing for the collapse of Mr. Assad's regime.
Israel's military chief told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday that his country will be prepared to take in Syrian refugees in the Golan Heights when Mr. Assad does fall.
