MOSCOW. Feb 4 (Interfax) - Leader of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces (NCSROF) Ahmad Jarba has accused the Syrian authorities of supporting a terrorist organization called the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
"The regime supports the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, helping its development," he told a press conference at the Interfax head office on Tuesday.
"The regime strives to promote extremist sentiments by supporting this organization," he said.
Syria is populated by a large number of ethnic and religious minorities, and one of the results of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's rule is that the country's power is held by "the mafia minority of Alawites." Assad himself is an Alawite.