Former Iraqi MP Entifadh Qanbar says the Arab League's initiative calling for the Syrian president's resignation is illegitimate, Press TV reports.

In an interview with Press TV on Friday, Entifadh Qanbar said the Arab League's initiative was not even discussed at the organization's recent meeting.

He stated that Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani prevented General Mohammed Ahmed Mustafa al-Dabi, the head of the delegation of Arab League observers currently in Syria to monitor the situation, from giving his report, which was supposed to be the only item on the agenda of the meeting.

However, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari objected to the suppression of the report, Qanbar added.

He went on to say that Zebari subsequently asked Dabi the following four questions: “Did the Syrian government cooperate with the monitors?”; “Did the Syrian government allow foreign journalists to be on the scene?”; “Did the Syrian government withdraw their tanks and army from the cities?”; and “How many people were killed during the monitoring period?”

According to the former Iraqi MP, the answer to the first three questions was “yes” and in response to the fourth question, Dabi replied, “136 people, including the fatal explosion in Damascus.”

Qanbar stated that the original report's answers to the four questions were not “suitable” for Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal and led to the withdrawal of the Saudi monitors.

“Surprisingly, after the meeting, Sheikh Hamad Al Thani stood up in the press conference and mentioned that there was a decision for an Arab initiative for Mr. Bashar al-Assad, the president of Syria, to step down,” he added.

He asserted that the Arab League initiative is “completely illegitimate” since it was not discussed nor approved by a vote at the meeting, and “therefore, basically, a clear hijacking of the Arab League.”

In conclusion, he said that during the meeting, “Hoshyar Zebari honorably made it very clear that trying to internationalize this issue and taking it to the UN Security Council is unacceptable to Iraq.”

On January 24, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem said the Arab League call for President Bashar al-Assad to step down was outrageous and a flagrant intervention in Syria's internal affairs.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March, with demonstrations being held both in favor of and against President Assad.

Damascus says “outlaws, saboteurs and armed terrorist groups” are responsible for the unrest and it is being orchestrated from abroad.

MHB/HGL¬

Source: Press TV