{"id":164,"date":"2014-04-14T09:00:34","date_gmt":"2014-04-14T09:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/?p=164"},"modified":"2014-04-14T09:02:44","modified_gmt":"2014-04-14T09:02:44","slug":"syrian-opposition-activist-calls-peace-israel-read-syrian-opposition-activist-calls-peace-israel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/syrian-opposition-activist-calls-peace-israel-read-syrian-opposition-activist-calls-peace-israel\/","title":{"rendered":"Syrian opposition activist calls for peace with Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kamal al-Labwani says the two countries share common enemies, appeals for alliance with Jerusalem to oust Assad<\/span><\/p>\n

a senior Syrian opposition member has appealed for collaboration with Israel to topple the Assad regime, claiming that \u201cthe revolution created a historic opportunity for peace between the nations.<\/span><\/p>\n

Kamal al-Labwani, a physician and former decade-long political prisoner, told the Walla news portal over the weekend that he believes \u201cwe have shared interests with Israel.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIran, Hezbollah, and al-Qaeda are the joint enemies of Israel and the Syrian people. We must collaborate against them,\u201d the influential activist said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The sudden consideration of Israel as a potential political ally, he explained, comes in light of the evolving political landscape in the Middle East.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe reality in the Middle East has changed,\u201d he said. \u201cThe concepts we were raised with have changed. The friend becomes the enemy and vice versa. Many Syrians are willing to weigh new solutions.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition, an alliance with Syria would serve Israel\u2019s interests, he continued. The opposition leader attributed the instability in the region to Iran, and said, \u201cWherever there is violence, you can find Iranian involvement.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIsrael, on the other hand, is a state that can blend in with the region,\u201d he said, with the stipulation that it reach an agreement with the Palestinians in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative.<\/span><\/p>\n

While Israel maintains diplomatic relations with Jordan, Egypt, and Turkey, \u201cthe potential is much greater,\u201d he added. \u201cThe key is changing the situation with Syria \u2014 weakening the Iranian representation, defeating the extremists, and strengthening those parties interested in stability and in peace.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe world failed with Syria, but perhaps Israel will reveal itself as the state that is willing to take responsibility and do the right thing,\u201d Lawani, a founder of the Liberal Democratic Union opposition party, said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Labwani\u2019s remarks drew fierce criticism from officials on behalf of President Bashar Assad.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bouthaina Shaaban, a political and media adviser, said his statements were \u201cnot surprising.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s known that what is happening in Syria is planned and coordinated with agents that work for Israel,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Shaaban said the opposition leader was \u201cserving the Zionists,\u201d and that both he and his supporters were \u201cbetraying their country.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Labwani responded to the accusations, retorting that \u201cthose who blow up innocent civilians with explosives and chemical weapons would do well not to preach morality.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In\u00a0an interview with London-based daily Al-Arab\u00a0in March, Labwani said Syrian rebels would forsake claims to the Golan Heights in exchange for a no-fly zone over southern Syria that would be enforced using its air defense systems and Patriot missiles.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAs long as we Syrians continue to believe in annihilating Israel and Israelis, it is only natural for Israel to continue supporting Assad who has not lifted a finger against it,\u201d Labwani told the paper. \u201cWe will sign peace with the Israelis at the end. Why deny it?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhy should we not sell the Golan issue through negotiations rather than lose it to Assad and lose Syria along with it?\u201d he added.<\/span><\/p>\n

He proposed that the Americans turn the Golan Heights into \u201can international peace park\u201d and open its tourist sites to the entire world.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe settlers who want to remain can remain, those who want to return to Israel or elsewhere can go. As for the original [Arab] inhabitants of the Golan, they will have to choose between returning to their land and being compensated,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Speaking to the Israeli news outlet on Friday, Labawani said there was no reason Jews and Arabs could not coexist in the region.<\/span><\/p>\n

Recalling his first encounter with Jews, at a meeting with White House officials during a 2005 visit to Washington, Labwani said: \u201cIt didn\u2019t bother me. In Syria, there is a long history of Jewish presence. Until 1948, Jews and Arabs lived side by side throughout the Middle East. There is no reason it cannot return to be that way.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Elhanan Miller contributed to this report.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Time Of Israel\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kamal al-Labwani says the two countries share common enemies, appeals for alliance with Jerusalem to oust Assad a senior Syrian opposition member has appealed for collaboration with Israel to topple the Assad regime, claiming that \u201cthe revolution created a historic opportunity for peace between the nations. Kamal al-Labwani, a physician and former decade-long political prisoner,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":165,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[14],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=164"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":168,"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164\/revisions\/168"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/165"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=164"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=164"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.di4sr.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=164"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}