The ongoing turmoil in Syria has alarmed the international community. Yesterday, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced it will investigate the possible use of chemical weapons in Syria. And today, Syrian President Bashar Assad vowed to avenge the death of a senior pro-government cleric who was killed along with dozens of people in a suicide bombing at a Damascus mosque, saying he would “purge our country” of the militants behind the attack in the heart of the capital. NJ Today Managing Editor Mike Schneider sat down Prospect Park Mayor Mohamed Khairullah to discuss his own firsthand accounts of what some are calling war crimes.
Khairullah traveled to his homeland of Syria as recently as December on a 12-day trip to bring supplies to schools and hospitals in Syria and to a refugee camp in Turkey. “It was devastating to see what I saw in terms of buildings that I use to see before,” he said. “Now they’re collapsed, one floor on top of the other where people use to live.”
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He has no doubt that it is the Syrian regime that is behind the destruction, saying “they’re the only one with the fire power to cause such damage.”
The UN investigation will focus on an incident in Khan al-Assal, Aleppo province. The Assad regime and rebel forces are accusing each other of using chemical weapons.
Khairullah said he believes that light chemicals have been used, not by the rebels, but by the Assad regime. “They’ve lied to their people for the past 42 years. They’re lying to the world,” he said. “Their method of stopping any quest for freedom is by killing people but that’s not going to fly with the Syrian people anymore. They’re determined to gain their freedom.” But Khairullah fears that that the more desperate the regime becomes, the more dangerous the weapons it will use to hold onto power.
As for the incident in Aleppo, Khairullah does not believe an explosion took place at a mosque. He said it was a story fabricated by the regime. “Number one, there is no evidence of an explosion. Anybody who watches the video from inside that mosque, there is no evidence of any explosion, no burns to the rugs, to the walls. I mean a hand grenade would have done more damage than what we’ve seen,” said Khairullah.
Khairullah’s speculation of what actually happened is just as disturbing. According to Khairullah, the picture of the victims may have been of those who were executed. “They’re laying on the floor with blood under their heads,” he pointed out.
Despite the chaos, Khairullah rejected the notion that Syria is following the path of Iraq in terms of sectarian violence. He said history will show that “this is purely a revolution by the Syrian people to gain their freedom.”
Many in the international community have called for the U.S. to play a greater role in the conflict. Khairullah believes that the U.S. can do more to apply pressure on the Syrian regime. “I don’t believe in putting in American boots on the ground but we could do some military operations without having to put our boots on the ground there.”