Riad Hijab: Bashar's regime is not rehabilitative and there is no solution in Syria except with his departure

The former Syrian Prime Minister, Dr. Riyad Hijab, who was a guest on the program "The Other Side", confirms that the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad does not need "rehabilitation", because it has lost its legitimacy and validity, and believes that the solution to the Syrian crisis will not be possible without his departure.

According to his view, Bashar's regime is "unrehabilitable," and Hijab confirmed to the "Other Side" program that Bashar believes that the international community and the Arab League are forced to return to him after he allegedly won the war he waged against the Syrian people. The truth is that Bashar did not win this war, as Hijab explains, but committed crimes and atrocities against Syrians, and therefore "there can be no stability in Syria with this regime in power."

On the other hand, he believes that the next stage could carry something for the Syrian issue, in the midst of the movement taking place due to the major transformations taking place in the world and at the level of the Syrian scene since the Russian war on Ukraine, pointing to the retreat of Russian forces in Syria and Iran's attempts to expand its influence there, and Israel's escalation towards the Iranian presence in Syria.

The veil describes the Syrian reality today as very difficult and painful, as there are 5 armies on Syrian soil, and 4 governments, one affiliated with the regime, the other to the SDF, the interim government of the coalition, and the government of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham.

In addition to the great suffering of Syrians in the camps, there is an economic collapse and the disintegration of state institutions, in addition to the consequences of the devastating earthquake that struck Syria and Turkey, in which the United Nations organizations and the international community were reluctant and negligent to help the affected Syrians.

Returning to the bloody events that took place in Syria after the outbreak of the popular revolution in March 2011, the guest of the episode (2023/9/29) of the program "The Other Side" explains how the Bashar regime resorted since the early days of the revolution to the use of force and violence against demonstrators, whose demands Hijab said were legitimate, as they were related to the release of detainees and the provision of job opportunities.

He recounts that he was disturbed by the bombing of Deir al-Zour after forming his government in June 2012, and when he inquired with the defense minister and chief of staff, they told him that orders to bomb were given directly to field commanders and issued by the committee in the presidential palace.

To his surprise, he said, Bashar al-Assad, who asked him to head the government, described this government as a government of war.

He also asserts that the Syrian regime had the largest role in the bombing of the Syrian National Security building, known as the bombing of the crisis cell on July 18, 2012, and the main target was General Asef Shawkat, because Bashar and his brother Maher were afraid of him.

Hijab reveals that after the killing of the members of the crisis cell, he was invited to a meeting in the Qatari leadership, and Farouk Al-Sharaa was present and spoke with Bashar about his position as head of state cannot be compromised, and suggested that he make reforms as a solution to the Syrian crisis, but Bashar was agitated by the words of Al-Shara, and said: "This is a battle and must be won."

After the meeting, Bashar asked him to stay with him and told him that al-Sharaa had dementia and the disease affected him, and that he would be relieved of his post within a month and the Qatari leadership would be dissolved.

Defection and joining the opposition

In light of the Syrian regime's insistence on using the security option against the demonstrators, the former Syrian Prime Minister decided to defect from this regime and join the opposition, and says in this context that the decision came as a result of his refusal to be a partner in shedding the blood of Syrians and in destroying Syria, accusing the regime of committing atrocities against the Syrian people through abuse, arrests, and the use of tanks and aircraft.

With the help of the Free Syrian Army, Hijab was able to go out to Jordan in difficult circumstances, and says that no one contacted him at the time from the Syrian opposition, which he accused of bearing great responsibility for what happened in Syria and that it lacks a political vision and real institutions, stressing that some Arab leaders he met expressed to him their fears about the weak performance of the opposition.

It is noteworthy that Hijab held several ministerial positions under Bashar, and after defecting he was active in the ranks of the opposition and was appointed general coordinator of the High Negotiations Committee, which was tasked with dialogue with the Assad regime, but he resigned in 2017.