Hariri wanted moderates to replace Assad: Wikileaks

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Lebanon’s erstwhile caretaker Prime Minister, Saad Hariri, wanted a coalition of progressives to replace President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, in a bid to isolate his neighboring state, according to cables released by Wikileaks and published in the Arabic newspaper Al Ahram on Friday.

The cable was filed in the US embassy in Beirut in 2006 after a meeting between Mr. Hariri and US officials, shortly after the end of the Lebanon-Israel war. In the course of the meeting, Mr. Hariri talked about how it was important for the international community to isolate the 45-year-old Mr. Assad using sanctions. He warned that failure to isolate Syria would destabilize Lebanon and strengthen Iran’s grip on the region.

Mr. Hariri, 40, also recommended a coalition of secular forces to replace Mr. Assad’s regime. He suggested the Muslim Brotherhood should join hands with former vice president Abdel Halim Khaddam and former army chief of staff Hikmat Shehabi, according the cable.

Although the Muslim Brotherhood is banned in Syria, Mr. Hariri in the cable compared the group to moderate Muslims in Turkey and said they were likely to support peace with Israel.

Syria and Lebanon have long had a contentious relationship, with ties deteriorating after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005. Many Lebanese allege Syria’s involvement in the murder, which the latter has always denied. Following the assassination, Syria withdrew its forces from Lebanon after a presence of nearly three decades.

The release of the cables has come at a time when Damascus is accusing Jamal al-Jarrah, a member of Mr. Hariri’s party, of funding the current protests in Syria, an allegation that Mr. Jarrah denies.

Al Arabiya

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15 responses to “Hariri wanted moderates to replace Assad: Wikileaks”

  1. Fauzia45 Avatar

    Everything is well coordinated ,leaks,time and scenarios!

  2. Fauzia45 Avatar

    Everything is well coordinated ,leaks,time and scenarios!

  3.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    Everything is well coordinated ,leaks,time and scenarios!

  4. antar2011 Avatar
    antar2011

    it is interesting on aljazeera news the title was slightly changed.

    here it is said ‘Hariri wanted moderates to replace Assad: Wikileaks”

    in aljazeera

    harriri wanted salafis/islamists to replace Assad”

  5. antar2011 Avatar
    antar2011

    it is interesting on aljazeera news the title was slightly changed.

    here it is said ‘Hariri wanted moderates to replace Assad: Wikileaks”

    in aljazeera

    harriri wanted salafis/islamists to replace Assad”

  6.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    it is interesting on aljazeera news the title was slightly changed.

    here it is said ‘Hariri wanted moderates to replace Assad: Wikileaks”

    in aljazeera

    harriri wanted salafis/islamists to replace Assad”

  7.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    it is interesting on aljazeera news the title was slightly changed.

    here it is said ‘Hariri wanted moderates to replace Assad: Wikileaks”

    in aljazeera

    harriri wanted salafis/islamists to replace Assad”

  8. Leborigine Avatar
    Leborigine

    22 years ago, when Aoun was annihalated by the syrian army after he betrayed his country and fought the LF for power, a very close friend of my fathers who was a Druze said to me that day that Lebanon will never be able to beat syria militarily, but politically we can can F%$k them inside out. I never understood him then, but now I do and may he R.I.P.

  9.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    22 years ago, when Aoun was annihalated by the syrian army after he betrayed his country and fought the LF for power, a very close friend of my fathers who was a Druze said to me that day that Lebanon will never be able to beat syria militarily, but politically we can can F%$k them inside out. I never understood him then, but now I do and may he R.I.P.

  10. libnan1 Avatar

    Jr. be careful, this might be the end of Hariri dynasty in Lebanon.

  11. libnan1 Avatar

    Jr. be careful, this might be the end of Hariri dynasty in Lebanon.

  12.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    Jr. be careful, this might be the end of Hariri dynasty in Lebanon.

  13. who doesn’t?

  14.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    who doesn’t?

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