Is Syria's Assad Regime Nearing its Endgame?

"Syria claims it is interested in a dialogue with the opposition. Yet its actions in cities like Hama and along the Turkish border directly undermine the credibility of its words and its initiative. We urge the government of Syria to immediately halt its intimidation and arrest campaign, pull its security forces back from Hama and other cities, and allow the Syrian people to express their opinions freely so that a genuine transition to democracy can take place."

These are the words of US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland, read in a prepared statement.

"There is no military offensive on Hama,….Maybe some military were moving toward Idlib; they have to cross through near Hama. But there is no military campaign against Hama. If they [protesters] are peaceful, I tell you, assure you, nobody can attack them,….This is the instruction from President al-Assad himself."

These are the words of Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem when he was asked about reports that the Syrian military was on the outskirts of Hama and had killed at least 11 protesters.

CNN reported today "that on Monday, dozens of security forces began raiding homes and arresting activists on the outskirts of Hama before clashes that led to the deaths of three people." CNN added that it cannot independently verify these reports. Because of the Syrian regime’s news blackout, one might add.

The National Organization for Human Rights in Syria also reported Tuesday’s 11 deaths in Hama.

Hama is the city some 200 kilometers north of Damascus which was the center of a Muslim Brotherhood revolt in 1982. The revolt and the Brotherhood were violently crushed, with thousands reported killed by Syrian security forces.

Are we nearing the denouement of the Syrian civil crisis? Can Bashar al-Assad hang on to power much longer - with the UN tightening its sanctions against him and his inner circle, with literally hundreds of thousands of Syrian citizens marching every week, with ten thousand Syrians massed as refugees on the Turkey order and just inside?

Perhaps even more important, Tuesday, for the third time in a week, former and current deputies met to try to find "a third way" out of the crisis gripping the country. These are powerful people close to al-Assad’s regime.  And, on June 27^th, a group of intellectuals and independent opponents of the regime met to find some means of easing the crisis and beginning dialogue toward installing a more democratic government.

These leaders may yet find a way out for the citizens of Syria.