Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has thrown his weight behind Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and pointed a finger of blame at the West for recent unrests in the Middle Eastern country.
Chavez accused the United States and its allies of fomenting unrest and protests in Syria, arguing that Western powers were seeking to topple the Syrian government.
“Terrorists are being infiltrated into Syria and producing violence and death — and once again, the guilty one is the (Syrian) president, without anyone investigating anything,” AFP quoted Chavez as saying on Monday.
“They’re starting to say: ‘Let’s see if we sanction the government, we’re going to freeze their assets, we’ll blockade them, throw bombs on them, in order to defend the people,” Chavez added.
Chavez’s remarks in support of his Syrian counterpart comes at a time Washington is gearing up to impose sanctions on Damascus under the pretext of punishing the state for alleged crackdown on protesters.
Syrian authorities blame armed groups and foreign elements for the violence and have repeatedly denied allegations that security forces are responsible for the death of protesters, saying they have been given clear instructions not to hurt civilians.
Clashes between Syrian security forces and armed groups in the city of Daraa on Monday left seven people killed and many others injured. Some reports, however, put the death toll at 25.
According to human rights activists, hundreds of people have been killed since the beginning of protests in Syria in mid-March.
Meanwhile, two Syrian lawmakers have resigned to protest the failure of security forces to protect the people. Reports say the mufti of the city of Daraa has also resigned.
