Assad tasks Syria PM with forming new gov't
Iran Press TV
Sun Aug 10, 2014 3:24PM GMT
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has tasked Prime Minister Wael al-Halqi with forming a new government.
Assad issued a decree on Sunday ordering Halqi to form the new cabinet, the official SANA news agency reported.
The decree comes three weeks after Assad was inaugurated for a third term following an election in which he garnered nearly 90 percent of the vote.
Al-Halqi automatically became a caretaker premier after the June vote. It is not clear how much time he has to form the cabinet.
Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies - especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey - are supporting foreign-backed militants operating inside the country.
Some sources say more than 170,000 people have been killed and millions displaced due to the turmoil.
Speaking in his inauguration ceremony on July 16, Assad said the war was waged against the Syrian people rather than the government in order to justify foreign military intervention in the country.
The Syrian leader added that the crimes committed by terrorists over the past three and a half years showed the true colors of what foreign powers call a revolution.
Assad stressed that the violence fueled by the US and its regional allies would spill over and backfire on themselves.
Meanwhile, the Syrian army has achieved major victories in its battle against Takfiri groups across the Arab country, particularly in the western region of Qalamoun near the Lebanese border, over the past months.
MR/AB
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