Editor's Note

Syrian opposition forces have been mobilizing Prime Minister Riyad Hijab and some ministers for the last four months, an opposition official told the Global Times after Hijab reportedly fled the country on Monday and defected to the opposition seeking to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.

Syrian state television said Hijab had been fired, but an official source in the Jordanian capital Amman said he had been dismissed only after he fled across the border with his family.

Latest News

Syrian troops gains on ground, clouded by premier  defection
The Syrian troops made achievements Monday in their battles with the armed rebels in northern Aleppo province and elsewhere, the state media said. However, the military gains were overshadowed by the defection of breakaway Prime Minister Riyad Farid Hijab.

Syrian prime minister sacked of post amid reports of possible defection
Syrian prime minister Riyad Farid Hijab was sacked Monday of his post with no official explanation, according to the state TV, as Arab TVs said the prime minister has defected to Jordan.

Syrian govt dealt another blow as PM switches sides
Syrian opposition forces have been mobilizing Prime Minister Riyad Hijab and some ministers for the last four months, an opposition official told the Global Times after Hijab reportedly fled the country on Monday and defected to the opposition seeking to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.

Announcements

Hijab’s spokesman:

The former prime minister's spokesman, Mohammed Otri, has read out Hijab's defection statement on al-Jazeera.

It said:

I announce today my defection from the killing and terrorist regime and I announce that I have joined the ranks of the freedom and dignity revolution. I announce that I am from today a soldier in this blessed revolution.

Jordan government:

Jordan's Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications Samih Maaytah on Monday said Hijab has not entered Jordanian territory as of press time, the state-run Petra news agency reported. Al Arabiya TV channel said Hijab was to leave Jordan for Qatar.

Comments

	Syrian govt dealt another blow as PM switches sides "It will inspire the opposition forces and encourage the Western countries who support the opposition forces to provide more tempting offers to further disintegrate the Syrian forces," Li Weijian, director of the Institute for Foreign Policy Studies of the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, told the Global Times. However, Li said it is difficult to tell if or when Assad will give up power.
	PM defection deals painful blow to Syrian leadership The defection of Syrian Prime Minister Riyad Hijab, despite the attempts by the government to downplay its significance, is considered as another sign of the increasing political pressure that the Syrian leadership faces from within.
	Syria crisis: prime minister 'defects'   Syria's prime minister, Riyad Hijab, has become the highest-ranking official to defect from the Assad regime. His spokesman said he had fled to Jordan with several members of his family, including two brothers who were also ministers.
	Syrian prime minister defects, fighting goes on The defection of Riyad Hijab - who like most of the opposition hails from the Sunni Muslim majority - was a further sign of the isolation of Assad's government around an inner core of powerful members of his minority Alawite sect.
	Officials: Syria's prime minister defects from al-Assad regime Syria's prime minister defected Monday, becoming the latest among high-profile politicians and leaders to leave the embattled regime of Bashar al-Assad. Analysts described Hijab's departure as a significant symbolic blow for al-Assad's government but noted that the former prime minister had been on the job for only a few months.
	Prime Minister’s Defection in the Dark Jolts Syrians The scale of the Hijab defection — involving 10 prominent Sunni families who escaped in small groups over the past week — suggests that Mr. Assad is losing the loyalty of Sunni political and security officials crucial to his minority government’s ability to hold power.

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