The Supreme Guide of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Badie, fiercely attacked the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad in his weekly message Thursday, calling on Assad to step down and learn from Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya's deposed rulers.
“The regime of Bashar [al-Assad] is no longer faithful to its people or the protector of the homeland. It has become an example of injustice, tyranny, violence and terrorism in its worst form,” he said.
Badie directed his speech to Assad saying, “If a little modesty still remains in you, fear thy Lord, fear him in his servants, and do not forget that you are indebted to your people. In order to preserve what is left from the wealth of your country, to achieve the legitimate demands [of the Syrian people], you need to leave power to whoever [the people] select and choose according to their own free will, and to stop shedding blood and demolishing cities with heavy weapons which you did not use against the usurpers of your land, the enemy of God and our enemy. How can you direct [the weapons and army] against the innocent and defenseless children of your own people?
“The blood of the martyrs, the pain of the wounded, the groans of the tortured, the smells of gunpowder, the artillery fire and the methods of repression and torture are the scourge and curses through which God breaks the back of each despotic obstinate [ruler]. It is an indication of the demise of his throne and the waning of his power forever, and it is the last nail in the coffin of a regime that believed it was the master of people, not a beholden to them.”
He stressed that “the Muslim Brotherhood refused from the beginning the policies of the Syrian regime and the way it dealt with the revolt of its people, and sided with the will of the Syrian people and their demands. We called, along with others, for [the regime] to meet the demands of the people and fulfill its role in protecting and serving, not crushing and killing them, and maintaining the wealth of the country, not destroying and looting it.
“But [the regime] did not listen to anyone’s advice, forgot that bloodshed is the fuel of revolutions, and that the more blood is shed, the more the end approaches, which will be a lesson like that of [Assad’s] predecessors: the despots of Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and Yemen, and before them Pharaoh and Haman,” he said.
Badie criticized those who assist Assad, saying that “whoever gives a helping hand will pay the price politically, popularly and legally, as the people no longer accept blatant interference in their internal affairs.”
Translated from Al-Masry Al-Youm
