Nawaf al-Fares ( ar, نواف فارس الصياح ) is the former Syrian ambassador to
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
who defected from the ruling government led by
Bashar al-Assad on 11 July 2012 during the
Syrian uprising.
[
]
Career
Fares was a veteran of Assad's rule and held senior positions as a leading member of Syria's diplomatic corps under the late president Hafez Assad
Hafez al-Assad ', , (, 6 October 1930 – 10 June 2000) was a Syrian statesman and military officer who served as President of Syria from taking power in 1971 until his death in 2000. He was also Prime Minister of Syria from 1970 to 197 ...
.[ He served as high-ranking official of the Syrian Regional Branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party in Deir al Zour province.] Additionally, Fares held senior security posts in Syria. He is also a former provincial governor. He served as the governor of three significant governorates, Latakia Governorate
Latakia Governorate, also transliterated as Ladhakia Governorate, ( ar, مُحافظة اللاذقية / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat al-Lādhiqīyah'') is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in western Syria, bordering Turkey's Hata ...
(until 2000), Idlib Governorate (appointed in 2000)[ and ]Quneitra Governorate
Quneitra Governorate ( ar, مُحافظة القنيطرة / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Al-Qunayṭrah'') is one of the fourteen governorates (provinces) of Syria. It is situated in southern Syria, notable for the location of the Golan Heights. The ...
.[
He was the first Syrian ambassador to ]Baghdad
Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon. I ...
after thirty years. His term as ambassador to Iraq began on 16 September 2008. He resigned both from the Ba'ath Party and as Syria's ambassador to Iraq on 11 July 2012.[
]
Defection
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera ( ar, الجزيرة, translit-std=DIN, translit=al-jazīrah, , "The Island") is a state-owned Arabic-language international radio and TV broadcaster of Qatar. It is based in Doha and operated by the media conglomerate Al Jazeera ...
reported on 11 July 2012 that Fares had defected from the Syrian government. His defection was considered to be a significant event in regard to the future of the Syrian uprising. On the same day, Fares posted a video statement on Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...
, arguing that Syrian government forces were killing civilians and that he had joined the ranks of the revolution of the Syrian people. He further called for the members of the Syrian military to join this revolution and to save the country and the citizens. On 12 July 2012, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari told reporters in Paris that Nawaf al Fares is in Qatar
Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it ...
.
The Syrian Foreign and Expatriates Ministry in Damascus issued a statement on 12 July 2012 dismissing Fares. The declaration stated that Fares "has been relieved of his duties" and "no longer has any link with the Syrian Embassy in Baghdad." It is further stated by the Ministry that he should be punished due to "legal and disciplinary accountability."
In his 15 July 2012 CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
interview, Fares said that he had tried to convince the Syrian government to change its approach towards the people and that foreign military intervention was needed to end the chaos in Syria. In a BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
s against rebels, and raised the possibility that they may have already done so.