Harmoush the 'defector': "Everything about him is impossible to verify"

BBC Via FL

"...Harmoush appeared on Syrian TV on Thursday, confirming his defection but denying that the Syrian government had ordered its army to fire on civilians. He also accused Syrian opposition activists in Turkey of "empty promises"...
They believe he was either kidnapped by Syrian intelligence agents or sent back by the Turkish security forces.But Turkish officials point out that of a total of over 18,000 Syrians who fled over the border, most have now chosen to go home.
We may never know why Col Harmoush went home. Turkish officials believe he may have been coerced, through threats to his family. His own accounts of how and why he defected are inconsistent. In the end, even the life story of this high-profile witness has proved impossible to verify.
He said: "During my service in the Syrian army, nobody has ordered me to fire at the civilians or any others. I didn't see or hear any commander in the army that had given orders to shoot at civilians." He said activists in Turkey had pledged to help him arm Syrian civilians, but added: "They were all promises... they promised to supply me with weapons and money for liberation, but they were just promises." Harmoush said groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood told him they had smuggled weapons into Syrian areas such as Homs, Hama, Idlib and Latakia. Referring to the deaths in Syrian towns, he said: "I am sure that armed groups were the killers."... Harmoush did not refer directly to his return to Syria, saying only: "I have been thinking about coming back since the 15th day of Ramadan [15 August], but I was shocked to be used as a trade and how people begged money in my name and offered many promises none of which was achieved."

Questions still surround Col Harmoush's defection, his time spent in Turkey and his return.
Originally it was reported he had defected from the army with 30 others after it began shelling the town of Jisr al-Shughour in June.
A video was posted on YouTube showing him holding up his military ID card and saying: "I declare my split from the army."
But he later told the BBC he had not been at Jisr al-Shughour at the time of the killings, had defected four days later and did so alone...."

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