A group of Syrian opposition activists announced Thursday the creation of a council designed to present a united front against President Bashar Assad's regime, which has waged a bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters during the past six months. The Syrian opposition consists of a variety of groups with often differing ideologies, including Islamists, secularists and leftists, and there have been numerous meetings of exiles and others who say they represent the opposition. But activists said the new "Syrian National Council," formed during a meeting in Turkey, will try to establish consensus on dealing with Assad and the world community. It groups some 140 opposition figures, including exiled opponents and 70 dissidents inside Syria, said Basma Kodmani, a Paris-based academic. A popular uprising began in Syria in mid-March, amid a wave of anti-government protests in the Arab world that have already toppled autocrats in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. Assad has reacted harshly, with deadly force that the U.N. estimates has left some 2,600 people dead. The new council aims to "convey the Syrian people's just problems on the international platform, to form a pluralist and democratic state," a statement said. It also hopes to bring down the "leadership that is ruling through dictatorship, and to unite the prominent politicians under one umbrella." Although not everyone in Syria's opposition supports the initiative, the council's statement said its door is open to anyone who wants to join. It also stressed the need for a "revolution through peaceful means" in order to "bring down the regime through legitimate means and to protect state institutions." The emphasis on unity comes amid fears of civil war between Assad's ruling minority Alawite sect and the country's Sunni Muslim majority. Louay Safi, a U.S.-based academic told The Associated Press that the council is broad-based and includes Sunnis, Shiites, Alawites, Kurds and members of the Muslim Brotherhood. He said it is "open to everyone unless they are against democracy." Meanwhile, French Foreign Ministry spokeman Bernard Valero said Syrian opposition members are meeting in Paris with French officials on Thursday and Friday, though he did not identify the figures or elaborate on the meetings. Syrian opposition members in Istanbul said they were in contact with France but had no scheduled talks with French officials this week. Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said recently that France, Syria's onetime colonial ruler, will develop its contacts with Syria's opposition in a new effort to pressure Assad's regime.
