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Syria defiant after PM Riad Hijab defection | Syria defiant after PM Riad Hijab defection |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Syria's new cabinet has begun work, after Prime Minister Riad Hijab defected and denounced Damascus's "terrorist regime". | |
Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi said Mr Hijab had not yet appeared in person and he rejected reports of other ministerial defections. | |
Meanwhile, Iran's security chief has made an unexpected visit to Damascus in an apparent step change in diplomacy. | |
Tehran says it is planning a conference aimed at solving the Syrian crisis. | |
The staunchest regional ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Tehran is also trying to secure the release of a group of Iranians abducted by rebels from a bus in Damascus on Saturday. | |
'US held responsible' | |
An unconfirmed report from the rebels has suggested that three of the 48 hostages they are holding have been killed by army shelling. | |
Saeed Jalili, who heads Iran's supreme national security council and is considered a senior aide to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was due to meet Bashar al-Assad and several other top officials. | |
It also emerged that Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi was travelling to Turkey for talks in Ankara. | |
Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian has said it holds the US responsible for the hostages' safety. | |
He said the US was supporting "terrorist groups" and despatching weapons to Syria, and was therefore responsible for the lives of those abducted. | He said the US was supporting "terrorist groups" and despatching weapons to Syria, and was therefore responsible for the lives of those abducted. |
The rebels have claimed that the group are members of the Revolutionary Guard. Tehran says they are pilgrims who had been heading for a Shia religious site. | |
'Business as usual' | 'Business as usual' |
Caretaker Prime Minister Omar Ghalawanji headed an emergency cabinet meeting on Monday, stressing that all the ministers were there. He was due to chair a further session on Tuesday. | |
The BBC's Jim Muir, in neighbouring Lebanon, said state media were giving the impression of it being business as usual in Damascus. | The BBC's Jim Muir, in neighbouring Lebanon, said state media were giving the impression of it being business as usual in Damascus. |
Opposition activists said that apart from the prime minister, two other ministers had also defected and a third - Finance Minister Mohammad Jalilati - was arrested as he tried to escape. | Opposition activists said that apart from the prime minister, two other ministers had also defected and a third - Finance Minister Mohammad Jalilati - was arrested as he tried to escape. |
But footage of the cabinet on state TV showed two of the ministers who had supposedly defected and Syria's information minister played down the significance of Mr Hijab's departure. | |
"We haven't heard anything from the former prime minister and he didn't appear on TV," Omran al-Zoubi was quoted as saying by Syrian state news agency Sana. | "We haven't heard anything from the former prime minister and he didn't appear on TV," Omran al-Zoubi was quoted as saying by Syrian state news agency Sana. |
Syria was a state of institutions, the information minister said, and the flight of some of its individuals would not affect the state, however prominent they were. | Syria was a state of institutions, the information minister said, and the flight of some of its individuals would not affect the state, however prominent they were. |
'Safe location' | 'Safe location' |
Riad Hijab, appointed as prime minister less than two months ago, is the most prominent Syrian figure to defect so far. | Riad Hijab, appointed as prime minister less than two months ago, is the most prominent Syrian figure to defect so far. |
Although his whereabouts are unclear, his spokesman appeared on al-Jazeera TV in neighbouring Jordan saying that the prime minister had fled Syria with his family and was in "a safe location". | Although his whereabouts are unclear, his spokesman appeared on al-Jazeera TV in neighbouring Jordan saying that the prime minister had fled Syria with his family and was in "a safe location". |
"I have defected from the terrorist, murderous regime and [am] joining the holy revolution," ran Mr Hijab's statement read by his spokesman Mohammed el-Etri. | "I have defected from the terrorist, murderous regime and [am] joining the holy revolution," ran Mr Hijab's statement read by his spokesman Mohammed el-Etri. |
France said the Assad government was "doomed" and White House spokesman Jay Carney said such high-level defections signalled that President Assad's grip on power was "loosening". | France said the Assad government was "doomed" and White House spokesman Jay Carney said such high-level defections signalled that President Assad's grip on power was "loosening". |
"If he cannot maintain cohesion within his own inner circle, it reflects on his inability to maintain any following among the Syrian people that isn't brought about at the point of a gun," he said. | "If he cannot maintain cohesion within his own inner circle, it reflects on his inability to maintain any following among the Syrian people that isn't brought about at the point of a gun," he said. |
On the ground in Syria, the army is reported to have stepped up its bombardment of Aleppo. | |
Government forces are trying to dislodge rebel fighters who have taken control of some areas of Syria's second city. | |
Opposition activists report intense attacks on rebel-held areas on the north-east and south-west sides of the city. | |
State TV said troops had clashed with "terrorist groups" in several places, inflicting heavy losses and recapturing two police stations. | |
Further deaths were reported in Damascus on Tuesday. | |
Are you in Syria or do you have family there? You can send us your experiences and comments using the form below. | Are you in Syria or do you have family there? You can send us your experiences and comments using the form below. |
Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here. | Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here. |
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