ISTANBUL
Syrian Mufti Sheikh Ahmed Badr al-Din Hassoun has said that if the regime in Syria failed, other countries in the region, including Jordan, Iraq and Saudi Arabia would also collapse.
Talking to the Hezbollahs' Nour radio station on Thursday, Hassoun said that after Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan, Saudi Arabia would collapse if the regime in Syria fails.
Hassoun claimed that the incidents in Syria were a part of a plot that claimed Arab and Islamic world lack a powerful country.
If the Syrian oppositions come up with a comprehensive plan for Syrian people, President Bashar al-Assad is ready to step down, Hassoun also claimed.
Sheikh Ahmed Badr al-Din has been criticized by opposition groups because of his support to President Assad during violence that led to killing of thousands of Syrian people.
UN-Arab League Special Envoy to Syria Kofi Annan presented a peace plan last month. The six-point peace plan includes demands for a cease fire, the immediate withdrawal of heavy armor from residential areas and access for humanitarian aid.
The plan was presented to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on March 10 and accepted by him on March 27.
The cease fire came into effect on April 12, but although the overall level of violence has dropped since then, al-Assad's government has been accused of failing to abide by key terms of the truce plan, including pulling all forces from urban areas and allowing peaceful demonstrations.
The UN currently has 15 unarmed observers under its Supervision Mission to Syria (UNSMIS). The UN passed a resolution on April 14 for a total of 30 observers, then another resolution to increase the number to 300.
The UN says about 9,000 people have died in Syria since pro-democracy protests began in March 2011.
