Bashar Al Assad Quotes

“The fervor and single-mindedness of this deification probably have no precedent in history. It's not like Duvalier or Assad passing the torch to the son and heir. It surpasses anything I have read about the Roman or Babylonian or even Pharaonic excesses. An estimated $2.68 billion was spent on ceremonies and monuments in the aftermath of Kim Il Sung's death. The concept is not that his son is his successor, but that his son is his reincarnation. North Korea has an equivalent of Mount Fuji—a mountain sacred to all Koreans. It's called Mount Paekdu, a beautiful peak with a deep blue lake, on the Chinese border. Here, according to the new mythology, Kim Jong Il was born on February 16, 1942. His birth was attended by a double rainbow and by songs of praise (in human voice) uttered by the local birds. In fact, in February 1942 his father and mother were hiding under Stalin's protection in the dank Russian city of Khabarovsk, but as with all miraculous births it's considered best not to allow the facts to get in the way of a good story.”
― Christopher Hitchens, Love, Poverty, and War: Journeys and Essays

“If Syria is to rise from the ashes it needs a united Arab world which has one thing on its agenda, not the falling of a dictator for we have seen many of those fall, but the reemergence of a prosperous Arab nation, one that is not reliant on foreign aid but is self-sustained and set on its way to become powerful once again.”
― Aysha Taryam

“[...] il 7 ottobre 2011, in occasione dell'assassinio di Mechaal Tamo, figura di spicco dell'opposizione curda al regime, schierato e impegnato con la rivoluzione. La sua uccisione ha provocato manifestazioni in molte province del paese e 50.000 persone hanno partecipato al suo funerale a Kamechliyeh. Di fronte al coinvolgimento crescente della componente curda nella rivoluzione e alle dinamiche di incontro e unità con i suoi altri protagonisti i diversa provenienza, culminate nel venerdì "Hurria, Azadi" ("Libertà" in lingua araba e curda), il regime sceglie di giocare la carta della divisione, risparmiando le aree curde dalle distruzioni, anzi ritirandosene. [...]
I giovani curdi hanno sfidato una dittatura che negava persino le loro esistenze e hanno dimostrato di non essere mossi solo o prevalentemente da rivendicazioni "nazionali" proprio rifiutando di accontentarsi del riconoscimento della loro cittadinanza, obiettivo per cui avevano lottato generazioni precedenti di curdi. In questa chiara scelta di schieramento erano compresenti il rifiuto di farsi comprare con un passaporto e la sfida alle logiche e alle formazioni politico-militari da decenni in competizione, anzi in lotta, tra di loro, alcune delle quali si erano collocate addirittura a fianco del regime di Assad. [...]”
― Mamadou Ly, Dall'Egitto alla Siria. Il principio di una Rivoluzione Umana e i suoi antefatti

“Islamitische Staat is als een bliksemafleider waar alle spanningen en frustraties samenkomen. We leven in een goor neoliberaal tijdperk, en mensen worden door het economische systeem aan de kant gezet. Ze worden steeds overbodiger, kijk maar naar de berichten over de nieuwe golf automatiseringen die op komst is. De strenge islam biedt buitengesloten jongeren een sterke identiteit en groepsgevoel, en daarbovenop een staat die je de kans geeft om iemand te zijn, om avontuur te beleven, om te ‘leven’ tout court. In 2012 had je nog een soort idealisme bij jongeren die naar Syrië trokken. Ze gingen tegen dictator Bashar Al-Assad vechten. Naïef, maar begrijpelijk. Maar nu is Islamitische Staat puur fascistoïde geworden. Iedereen die zich daar nu nog bij aansluit is medeplichtig aan oorlogsmisdaden.”
― Teun Voeten