Activist Hassan Omar: Only Turkey stands by troubled Syrians

“All other countries in the world and members of the Arab League have turned their backs on the oppressed Syrians. Why do they keep silent over Syria when they had demanded other violent regimes step down immediately in countries like Tunisia, Egypt and Libya?” Omar asked.

Turkey called on Syria to immediately halt a violent crackdown on protesters and pass democratic reforms during a meeting on Thursday between Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu and a top Syrian envoy. The crackdown, which Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has condemned as “savagery,” has tested relations between the two countries and Turkey has given sanctuary to some 8,900 Syrian refugees who have streamed across the border.

Omar is among the young generation playing a vital role in the Syrian revolutionary movement. He told Sunday’s Zaman that he was one of the organizers of the demonstrations that started almost three months ago.

Omar, who actively participated in the ongoing uprising, is currently a wanted person in Syria. “My position is no different than my friends. Before I left Syria I was actively participating and organizing demonstrations in different parts of Syria. I was forced to escape from my country; had I not left, I would not be alive right now. I was a wanted person, so I fled to Turkey illegally through the mountains,” he said.

Omar arrived in Turkey approximately a month ago and submitted an application for asylum. The Turkish government has granted him permission to temporarily stay in Turkey. Omar says he will not be safe at all in his country until Syrian President Bashar al-Assad leaves power. Since his arrival in Turkey Omar has had various interviews with international media, including Reuters and Al Jazeera.

The revolutionary youth said the news and videos being published by the media are practically nothing compared to reality. Omar states that people in Syria are living in fear because of the violence Syrian security forces are inflicting on the citizens.

“As the youth of Syria, we will continue our fight till the end. We will never give up the fight for our freedom, pride and honor. We have nothing to lose. At worst we will lose our lives, which we are prepared to sacrifice for our people’s freedom,” Omar told Sunday’s Zaman.

According to Omar, Iran and Hezbollah supports the current regime in Syria and Iran has sent three warships to Syrian authorities to help them crush the uprising in Latakia. Syrian warships later joined these attacks from the coast of Latakia.

When Sunday’s Zaman asked Omar about a pro-regime rally held by supporters of Syrian President Assad on Wednesday in which they carried a 2.3-kilometer-long Syrian flag in Mezzeh, a neighborhood of Damascus, and chanted “The people want Bashar al-Assad,” Omar said: “These do not reflect the truth about Syria and those who are marching do not represent the masses in most of Syria. Those who marched on the street with that giant flag were there to save their lives; they were threatened by the authorities. Dozens of people are dying every day in our country.”

The Syrian government has tried offering a huge amount of funds to the Dubai based Al Arabia TV channel to support Bashar’s regime in their news, said Omar. He added that it is unknown whether Al Arabia had accepted this offer to keep silent over the violence in Syria.

According to Omar, the figures of the dead and injured released to the press do not reflect the truth. He says the true numbers, which he received from his fellow revolutionary friends, are over 8,000 dead, over 50,000 arrested and over 10,000 people missing.

Omar said he gets all the current news about the uprising in Syria from other revolutionaries. All the news regarding the unrest in Syria is updated by the youth of the country, who are organizing the protests in the various cities of Syria.

Omar told Sunday’s Zaman that he is not allowing himself to be photographed by any news agency or paper for now. “I am not afraid of anyone, but if my photograph appears in the paper, the violent Assad government may do anything and everything to my family. I am worried about my family, but I will hopefully be able to go back to my country when brighter days arrive,” he said.