Syrian rebels threaten to join al-Qaeda if West fails

By Areeb Hasni Aug 17th, 2012 ( No Comment )

Damascus: The Syrian rebels on Thursday demanded western powers to help them in fight against the regime led by President Bashar-al-Assad otherwise they could turn to al Qaeda for help.

United States and western powers are hesitating to provide lethal aid to rebels as they fear that the weapons would go in the hands of organized al-Qaeda fighters, fighting alongside the rebels.

“We don’t want al Qaeda here, but if nobody else helps us, we will make an alliance with them,”

said Abu Ammar, a rebel commander in the central Bab al-Nasr district of Aleppo.

“And you can bet if al Qaeda comes here, they will brainwash the people,” he said adding that if al Qaeda entered Aleppo, the city would become their base within three months.

He pleaded: “We want them to give us weapons to defend ourselves or to intervene militarily. We are angry. The Syrian people still like the European countries, but if it continues like this, you end up hating them.”

Syria’s opposition has frequently called on a divided international community to act to halt President Bashar al-Assad’s campaign of repression.

According to UN estimates, more than 18000 people have been killed since the popular uprising against the regime last year.