Jumblatt Supports Al-Nusra Front against Assad

Sunday, 10 March 2013

Jumblatt Supports Al-Nusra Front against Assad

Lebanese Progressive Socialist Party Leader Walid Jumblatt announced on Wednesday siding with Al-Qaeda allied group Al-Nusra Front, which has been battling the Syrian regime and slaughtering and massacring civilians in Syria.

"I support Al-Nusra Front against the Syrian regime," Jumblatt told Al-Akhbar newspaper in an interview published Wednesday.

"The Syrian people has the right to side with the devil -- except with Israel -- against the regime," Jumblatt added, indicating that he had previously asked the Americans, British, and French to support the Syrian armed opposition on the military level.”

"When Jeffrey Feltman was still in the US Administration, I asked him to present a serious military support to the Syrian opposition, which would permit it to defend Homs during Baba Amro battle,” the Lebanese Druze leader added.

Moreover, Jumblatt stated that he “bets on the secularists of the Syrian opposition,” considering that “the future is not for the extremists,” and that “Ahmad Moaz Al-Khatib is excellent.”

Jumblatt’s statements show his support to discordant parts in the Syrian opposition, knowing that each of these parts has different agendas. As Al-Nusra Front is an intolerant, extremist group which rejects any dialogue with the Syrian regime and had slaughtered a number of civilians only because of their support to President Bashar Al-Assad, Khatib had showed more openness as he met with Iranian and Russian officials and was ready to hold talks with the Syrian regime.

The Druze leader explained that "I am acting to protect the (Syrian) Druze. The Alawites (the sect Assad belongs to) will go back to their mountain, but the Druze live in a sea of Sunnis (the sect Al-Nusra Front belongs to).”

When asked: “What if Al-Nusra Front moved its work to Lebanon?” Jumblatt went silent, and then said: “Lebanon has a specialty that protects it and it should be preserved.”