Syrian National Council

The first opposition groups in Syria were formed back in 2005 in protest against the Assad regime. In 2011, as anti-government protests began to unfold in Syria, the consolidation of numerous opposition groups began. The formation of the Syrian National Council was officially announced in Istanbul on August 23, 2011. According to Yasser Tabbara , spokeswoman for the Council, the SNA will include from 115 to 120 members from all Syrian opposition groups. To date, the names of 71 members of the SNA have been made public - mostly political emigrants from Syria. On October 2, 2011, the SNA officially announced the formation of its organizational structure, including the General Assembly, the General Secretariat and the Executive Committee of 6-7 people, the staff of which has not yet been named ^[4] . In September 2011, the Syrian political scientist Burhan Galyun , who lives in Paris ^{[5] [6],} was appointed Chairman of the Council.

The SNA is currently supported by: the Syrian wing of the Muslim Brotherhood organization, the Assyrian Democratic Organization , some Kurdish dissidents, as well as several independent Syrian dissidents and the so-called "local coordination committees" - groups that organize and coordinate anti-government demonstrations, including using social networks and flash mobs . Representatives of the SNA claim that it represents approximately 60 percent of the Syrian opposition ^[7] . Some sources indicate a connection between the SNA and former Syrian vice president Abdel Halim Haddam , who lives in Paris ^[8] .

At the same time, the formation of the SNA met with mixed reactions from other opposition forces in Syria, in particular, criticism from the National Coordinating Committee for Democratic Change , representing mainly secular left and nationalist groups, independent dissidents and some Kurdish parties located mainly inside Syria ^{[ 9] [10]} . The only Kurdish party in Syria that has openly acknowledged its connection with the SNA is the Current Future , whose leader, Meshal Tammo, was killed shortly after this statement in the city of El-Kamyshly ^[11] .

Burkhan Galyun resigned on May 24, 2012, and a Kurdish activist Abdel Basset Seyda was elected instead of him at the congress of members of the General Secretariat in Istanbul ^[12] .

In the summer, Burkhan Galyun announced the opposition’s desire to move to Aleppo if the city was captured by rebels. ^[13]

In November 2012, the Council decided to unite with several other opposition groups to form the Syrian national coalition , in which the Council received 22 out of 60 seats ^[14] .

He left the coalition in January 2014, in protest against its participation in the Geneva talks with the Assad government ^[15] .

Currently, only three UN member states - France , Spain and Libya - have recognized the recognition, in one form or another, of the Syrian National Council. On October 10, 2011, Moussa al-Koni, a member of the Libyan National Transitional Council , stated that the National Transitional Council decided to recognize the Syrian National Council as the only legitimate government of Syria, and on October 19, the Libyan National Transitional Council officially announced its recognition of the SNA as “the legitimate authority of Syria” ^[16] . The Libyan National Transitional Council also announced that it is negotiating with the SNA and is considering the possibility of delivering weapons and sending volunteers to the Syrian Free Army ^[17] .

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe announced on November 21, 2011 that “the Syrian National Council is a legitimate negotiating partner with whom we will continue to work” ^[18] .

Spanish Foreign Minister Trinidad Jimenez confirmed on November 23, 2011 that the Spanish government will negotiate with Syria regarding the Syria and considers the SNS as the main representative of the Syrian people, who are in search of freedom and democracy ^{[19] [20]} .

On December 3, 2011, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Mladenov announced that the Syrian National Council “is an important dialogue partner on the future of Syria” ^[21] .

One of the leaders and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the SNA, Basma Kodmani, who left his ranks in August 2012, visited twice - in 2008 and 2012 - at the Bilderberg Conference ^[22] .

In September 2011, the famous Syrian dissident, Salim Heyerbek, described the opposition members of the National Salvation Council as working for American money and wanting to destroy Syria ^[23] .

• Syrian Civil War
• Syria Free Army