Bashar al-Assad
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said yesterday his country was in a state of war and ordered his newly appointed government to direct all its efforts towards vanquishing the uprising against him. “We live in a real state of war from all angles,” Assad told a cabinet he appointed yesterday in a speech aired on state television. “When we are in a war, all policies and all sides and all sectors need to be directed at winning this war.” Assad dismissed the arguments of Western countries that have been calling for him to step aside. The West “takes and never gives and this has been proven at every stage,” he said. “We want good relations with all countries but we must know where our interests lie,” he said. The president said Syrians would learn to support the government once it better explained its plans for political reforms. “When we transparently communicate with citizens, the citizens will understand and support us,” he said.