AFP is reporting that Ghassan Hitto, the current prime minister of the Syrian National Coalition (SNC), has resigned saying he was unable to form an interim government. According to the AFP report:
July 8, 2013 Syria’s rebel prime minister Ghassan Hitto announced his resignation on Monday, nearly four months after his appointment and having failed to form a government.
‘I announce I will not continue in my capacity as prime minister tasked with leading the interim government, though I emphasise I will continue working for the interests of the revolution and towards achieving its objectives,’ Hitto said in an online statement.
His resignation comes two days after secular dissident Ahmad Assi Jarba was chosen to lead the main opposition National Coalition.
Jarba is seen as close to Saudi Arabia, which opposed the selection of Hitto to head the interim government in March.
Dissidents say Hitto, who is close to the opposition’s Islamist ranks and whose candidacy was backed by Qatar, was unable to work because of divisions within the Coalition.
Hitto said he decided to resign in order ‘to help… the Coalition’s new leadership to act according to its political vision, especially with regards to the interim government and its executive functions’.”
Our predecessor publication was the first to report on the extensive US Muslim Brotherhood/Hamas ties of Mr. Hitto that include:
- According to investigative research conducted by the GMBDW Editor, Mr. Hitto was a Secretary-Treasurer of the American Middle Eastern League for Palestine (AMELP), another name by which the Islamic Association of Palestine (IAP) operated and that shared the same office and officers. The IAP was known to have been part of the Hamas infrastructure in the U.S.
- In 2002, U.S. media also identified Mr. Hitto as a “friend of the Elashi family” and who appeared to be acting as their spokesperson. In 2009, Ghassan Elashi was sentenced to 65 years in prison for his role in financing Hamas as part of the Holy Land Foundation.
- In 2002, U.S. media identified Mr. Hitto as the Vice-President of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) Dallas Fort-Worth Chapter (see Note 1). A Hudson Institute report , also authored by the GMBDW Editor, identifies CAIR as part of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas support infrastructure in the U.S.
- According to the Texas Secretary of State, Mr. Hitto is a director of the Muslim American Society (MAS) Youth Center of Dallas. He has also been listed in the past as the contact person for the Dallas chapter of the MAS. The Hudson Institute report also dentifies the MAS as part of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood and close to the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood.
So far, U.S. media has completely failed to identify any of these positions held by Mr. Hitto who became the fourth U.S. Muslim Brotherhood figure to be identified as part of the Syrian National Council. According to an Al-Jazeera report, Hitto founded the Coalition of Free Syria activist group in 2011, and become a national board member of the Syrian American Council the following year. The same report says he is a member of the recently formed National Coalition.
The Syrian National Coalition was created in November 2012 and included members from the Syrian National Council (SNC), an earlier group that was dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood. The Global Muslim Brotherhood Daily Report had also identified three SNC leaders that were tied to the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood as well as pointing out that Ghassan Hitto was also part of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood. The SNC and Global Muslim Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi enjoyed close relations and SNC President Moaz Khatib is also close to the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood.