Syrian Opposition rejoiced at defection of PM

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Syrian Opposition rejoiced at defection of PM

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The defection of Syria's prime minister was a boon for the opposition.

09 August,2012 10:41 pm

The difference between a trickle of defections and a division or battalion changing sides could tip the scales in favour of the opposition, says Wayne White of the Washington-based Middle East Institute.You could literally turn around a unit like that, and its a more potent weapon than rebel forces because it has more equipment, a chain of command and fights in an organised fashion with heavier weaponry.But the absence of mass army defections shows there are still a sufficient number of Sunni Arabs throwing their lot in with the regime.Of the officers above rank of colonel, I estimate that two thirds are not Alawites, White says.The regime needs 20-30 percent of them to remain loyal to stock the army with infantrymen and government with administrators to keep things going -- and that may be what they have.While the Republican Guard and the elite Fourth Armoured Division are expected to remain loyal, it is puzzling to observers that regular divisions which are even more heavily Sunni have not broken ranks.A division is made up of many battalions. Why hasnt one battalion defected and just gone over to the other side? asks White.The US and Turkey are waiting for this, hoping for this, wondering why its taken so long.But with the rebellion is now in its 17th month and the core leadership -- the family of President Bashar al-Assad and the top echelon of the military and security services -- remains intact.This is despite billions of dollars reportedly pledged by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait to encourage high-level defections, according to a Gulf-based diplomat.