Syrian National Council Hits Roadblocks in Doha

Photo Credit: Blent Kilic/AFP/Getty Images

The Syrian National Council (SNC) announced that a 40-member general secretariat was elected, which will be led by George Sabra.  Former parliamentarian and opponent of the Assad regime Riad Seif has also proposed an alternative representative body for the opposition, which was backed by several foreign governments including the U.S. The Seif plan would create a 50 or 60-member body with between 15 and 24 seats reserved for the SNC. Britain’s Foreign Secretary William Hague stated that “the longer the conflict in Syria goes on, the greater…the opportunity for extremist groups to gain a foothold,” in an attempt to urge the opposition to unite.

Meanwhile, the all-male leadership of Syria’s main opposition frustrated female delegates of the Syrian National Council (SNC) conference. “The bottom line is that there is a recognition that the women got shafted, and that it has to be fixed,” said delegate Muna Jundy. The SNC said they will address the imbalance by appointing four female candidates by decree. U.S. State Department Spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the U.S. hopes to “see all of the geographic aspects of Syria represented so that people inside Syria will feel comfortable with this group.”