Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi on Wednesday renewed his call for the departure of the current regime in Damascus. He urged Arab countries to move in order to find a quick solution to the conflict. "The time for change has come," said the Egyptian leader as he addressed the Syrian issue, in a keynote speech at a ministerial meeting of the Arab League in Cairo. "Do not waste time talking about reform," he said, insisting that "the Syrian people has clearly made his decision". He also warned Assad that his regime "will not be there for long. "
Mohamed Morsi also urged Damascus to "learn the lessons of recent history," a reference to the recent fall of authoritarian regimes in several Arab countries such as Egypt, Tunisia and Libya. "I mean that the Syrian regime has still a chance to stop the bloodshed," he said.
The Egyptian president also called on Arab countries to work towards finding a solution to the conflict. "The Syrian blood flows day and night, and we are responsible. We can not sleep while the Syrian blood is shed," said Morsi. The conflict in Syria has killed more than 26,000 people in nearly 18 months, according to a Syrian NGO. "I appeal to you, Arab foreign ministers to work hard to find an urgent solution to the tragedy of Syria," he added. "If we do not act, the world will not act seriously."
On Thursday, Morsi already caused a controversy at the Summit of Non-Aligned Countries in Tehran, lambasting the "oppressive regime that has lost its legitimacy" in Syria, calling the support of the opposition as a "moral duty" and a "political and strategic necessity."
