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Syria’s Prime Minister Expects Elections in 2014

An exclusive interview with Syrian Prime Minister Wael al-Halki.
Syrian Prime Minister Wael al-Halki talks to media in Damascus April 29, 2013, in this handout photograph distributed by Syria's national news agency SANA. Al-Halki survived a bomb attack on his convoy in Damascus on Monday, state media and activists said, as rebels struck in the heart of President Bashar al-Assad's capital. The Britain-based Syria Observatory for Human Rights, which has a network of sources across Syria, said one person accompanying the prime minister had been killed. State television repo

TEHRAN, Iran — I met Syrian Prime Minister Wael al-Halki in one of Tehran’s posh hotels while he was in the Iranian capital to take part in the inauguration of President Hassan Rouhani. A few months ago, on April 29, Halki survived an assassination attempt in Damascus, so I began by asking him about his thoughts at that moment and whether he had considered ridding himself of such a burden.

Halki replied, “The assassination attempt made me more confident of what I’m doing for my country. I’m not better than the martyrs who were killed on several occasions by those criminals.” He added, “The good news is that those who made the attempt on me and other innocent Syrians are now in custody. This same group killed Sheikh Ramadan al-Bouti, and soon you’ll see [their confessions] on Syrian television.”

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