Special to WorldTribune.com

ABU DHABI — Qatar has become the second Arab League state to call
for the arming of the Syrian opposition.

Qatar has urged the international community to help send weapons to the
Sunni rebels in Syria. Doha, deemed a leading supporter of the rebels, said
the arms would be used to defend against the crackdown by President Bashar
Assad.

“We should do whatever necessary to help them, including giving them weapons to defend themselves,” Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani said.

In a briefing on Feb. 27, Hamad said the Assad regime has continued to kill Syrian civilians. During a visit to Norway, the prime minister said the opposition would be helpless without international support.

“This uprising in Syria is now one year,” Hamad said. “For 10
months, it was peaceful. Nobody was carrying weapons, nobody was doing anything. And Bashar continued killing them. So I think they’re right to defend themselves by weapons, and I think we should help these people by all means.”

The prime minister did not specify the weapons that should be sent to
the Syrian rebels. The rebel Free Syrian Army has called for such arms as
anti-tank guided missiles, surface-to-air missiles and mortars.

Qatar, which in 2011 was a leading supporter of the revolt in Libya,
became the second Arab League state to call for the arming of the Syrian
opposition. On Feb. 24, Saudi Arabia endorsed such a proposal.

Hamad also urged for an international peace-keeping force led by the
Arab League. He said such a force was necessary after the failure by the
United Nations to call on Assad to stop killing civilians.

“The Security Council failed to take responsibilities to stop the
killing,” Hamad said. “We believe that the Arabs [are] capable of that. We
need [an international] coalition, but the core of the coalition should be
an Arab force.”

  Arab League, Bashar Assad, Free Syrian Army, Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani, Qatari leader calls on world to arm Syrian rebels, Sunni revolt, UN Security Council