HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani yesterday regretted the failure of all Arab and international initiatives geared toward ensuring a peaceful transfer of authority in Syria and staunch the bloodshed there because of the Damascus regime’s insistence on a security solution.

Opening the ministerial committee meeting at Sheraton Doha, he said: “We have launched successive Arab, and later international, initiatives to convince our brethren and the ruling authority in Syria to heed the desire of the free Syrian people.”

In October 2011, the Arab League had presented an initiative to solve the Syria crisis, and on January 22 this year, had proposed an organised withdrawal of the Syrian regime under Arab League supervision, preserving for Syria its status in the Arab world, HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim, who is the chairman of the Arab Ministerial Committee on Syria, recalled.

“Regrettably, the League’s initiatives fell on deaf ears whereas accusations against the League continued and the Syrian regime held up to a unilateral solution using force to kill innocent women and children.”

Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim said warnings preceded the current situation in Syria, before the Syrian people started to defend themselves whereas their struggle was described by some as a war of criminal gangs. He called for a secure way out of the crisis, maintaining the national fabric of Syria.

This, he added, needed a courageous decision by the Syrian president to transfer power peacefully to stem bloodshed.

The objective of the mission of Kofi Annan, the envoy of the Arab League and the UN, should change to target a peaceful transition of power in Syria. The Arab Ministerial Committee was not successful in transferring power and staunching blood-letting in Syria, he added.

“We were unsuccessful at the Arab and international levels to transfer power because of objections at the UN Security Council, the matter which leads to more violence in Syria”, he said.

The Prime Minister hoped that the UN Security Council would reassess the situation in Syria for the interest of the region and the strategic ties of the world with Syria. “Its time to achieve this objective,” he said.

“The world’s public opinion was hurt by the UN Security Council’s latest resolution on Syria which was shocking, and would only prolong the crisis.”

Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim emphasised that the Syrian people would eventually achieve their objectives, expressing the hope this would be realised with the least possible losses and destruction.

Addressing the ministerial committee, Arab League secretary general Nabil al-Arabi said the grave situation in Syria required a new Arab approach, leading to stopping bloodshed there.

As efforts so far had borne no fruits, a new course must be found to deal with the next phase of the conflict, dealing with the situation on the ground, he said.