Former Amb. to Syria: no power prepared to use military force

Ted Kattouf, former U.S. ambassador to Syria, discusses the violence in Syria and the U.S. options for intervention.

Kattouf tells CNN’s Ashleigh Banfield, “Once Bashar al Assad realized that the Russians and the Chinese had his back, he’s going all out to try to crush any resistance to his regime. He feels he has a narrow window in which to operate and they’re going all out, particularly in these pro-opposition neighborhoods that have armed men in Homs.”

He continues, “The president comes from a sect of Shia Islam that makes up about 10 percent to 12 percent of Syria’s population. Meanwhile, the Sunni Arab population of Syria is around 67 percent to 70 percent. And they’ve had enough of discrimination and of poverty and the like, and they want this regime gone. But the Alawites who dominate the military and intelligence services feel that if they lose power, it could be them who are on the receiving end of brutal treatment…. Ashleigh, we have to understand that there is no power, not even Turkey, which borders Syria that is prepared to use military force to bring down Assad. Now, that could change over time.”

Early Start with Ashleigh Banfield and Zoraida Sambolin airs week mornings from 5-7am ET on CNN.