Assad will go, says Shaul Mofaz, but the question is how many civilians he will kill first
Vice Prime Minister and Kadima leader Shaul Mofaz said that Israel should prepare for the possibility of opening a humanitarian relief corridor to Syria through the Golan Heights.
In an interview on Army Radio Wednesday morning, Mofaz said that the expulsion of Syrian diplomats from Western countries was an important gesture, but was not enough. “Most of the Western world realizes that Assad will stop at nothing to maintain his grip on power… The West must intervene, either directly or indirectly.”
Mofaz called out China and Russia for what he characterized as their “stammering” response to the goings-on in Syria. “Their behavior is undignified,” he said.
Asked about the possibility that anyone who replaces President Bashar Assad would be worse, Mofaz said that it would be hard to imagine anything worse than the current situation, in which security forces, whose function is to protect citizens, are conducting massacres of civilians.
“I have said all along that Assad is destined to lose power. It is only a question of how many civilians will die before that happens,” added Mofaz.
The former IDF chief of General Staff suggested that the international community should at least increase humanitarian aid to the people of Syria, and stressed that Turkey could have a key role in doing so.
“We too have to think about ways we can help, and it is worth at least preparing for an eventuality where we could also open up an aid corridor,” he said without elaboration.
Mofaz also addressed the accusations by Iran that Israel was behind the spread of the “Flame” cyber espionage software, saying it was in the interest of any number of Western countries to delay Iran’s nuclear development and calling any such effort “justified.”
Addressing Israel’s stressed relationship with Turkey, especially in light of Anakara’s decision to prosecute four IDF commanders for their alleged role in the events of the Mavi Marmara flotilla incident of 2010, Mofaz said it was not too late to hold a high level meeting and work things out with an important ally.
“We have many shared interests and we must protect them. A meeting of leaders should clear up the past, but mostly focus on the future,” Mofaz said.
