UAE official: Assad did not use 'lifeline' by Arab countries; Syrians must decide country's future

Syria is not out of the woods yet, and extremism and terrorism remain a main concern, the UAE's Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the President, said on Sunday.

Gargash, speaking on the sidelines of the Manama Security dialogue in Bahrain, blamed Bashar Al Assad's downfall on a failure of politics and said he had not used the 'lifeline' offered to him by various Arab countries before, including the UAE.

"Now there was a major failure, basically, in part in politics and policy, because Assad did not really use the sort of, you know, lifeline, that was thrown to him by various Arab countries, including the UAE, and did not really use that to open up, to move on to constitutional discussions that were taking place."

Syrian rebels said on Sunday they had ousted President Bashar Al Assad, eliminating a 50-year family dynasty in a lightning offensive that raised fears of a new wave of instability in a Middle East gripped by war.

Non-state actors should not be allowed the opportunity to exploit political vacuums, Dr Gargash said. "Unfolding events in Syria are also a clear indication of political failure and the destructive nature of conflict and chaos," he said in the first official comments from the UAE on the matter.

He added that Syria should have free elections so the Syrian people can choose who they want. "The driver in the future of Syria, has to be Syrian."

The senior official urged Syrians to collaborate to avert chaos. "We hope that the Syrians will work together, that we don't just see another episode of impending chaos.

• Syrian President Assad has left Damascus, say senior army officers; rebels enter the city