The Syrian opposition is pessimistic about the chances that Arab League monitors now visiting the country can halt President Bashar al-Assad's 9-month crackdown on anti-government protest, activists said on Saturday. There is little faith in the ability of the small observer team from fellow Arab states to bring about a withdrawal of armed forces from Syria's most turbulent cities and open the way to a peaceful dialogue leading to change, they said.
Some activists fear the country may slip into civil war if the Arab mission fails. An opposition leader in exile predicted the United Nations would have to step in. "We don't know what to do. But we know Assad and his regime won't give us what we want," said opposition activist Ziad in Douma, a suburb of Damascus that has become a city in revolt. "So why should we wait for them to help us?"
"Assad wants us to raise our weapons and kill each other and he is pushing us towards that every day. We wanted the monitors to help us find a solution, but it won't happen." The Arab League mission is destined to fail, said the Paris-based head of the opposition Syrian National Council, Burhan Ghalioun.
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