SYRIAN OPPOSITION LEADER HAS CANCER, DESCRIBES

C O N F I D E N T I A L DAMASCUS 000628

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PARIS FOR WALLER, LONDON FOR TSOU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/21/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL SY
SUBJECT: SYRIAN OPPOSITION LEADER HAS CANCER, DESCRIBES
PROGRESS ON NATIONAL CONGRESS

Classified By: A/DCM William Roebuck for reasons 1.4 b/d


1. (C) Summary: Leading opposition activist Riad Seif told
Emboff that he was making quiet progress on expanding the
small Damascus Declaration group into a 180-member National
Congress. Separately, he confirmed that he has been
diagnosed with prostate cancer and hopes to get permission
for treatment in Germany. End Summary.


2. (C) EXPANDING DAMASCUS DECLARATION GROUP: Prominent
Syrian opposition leader Riad Seif told Emboff June 20 that
the 34-member Damascus Declaration (DD) group had agreed at a
June 16 meeting to expand into a National Congress comprised
of up to 180 members in two or three months. Between now and
then, prospective candidates for the Congress will meet
secretly in small groups to discuss important issues and

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forge stronger bonds between one and another, according to
Seif. Candidates for the National Congress represent a broad
cross-section of Syrian society, including moderate
Islamists, but share common liberal democratic beliefs, Seif
said. Echoing comments made in the past, Seif said that by
expanding the DD group into the Congress it would dilute the
power of Arab nationalist DD members who tend to be critical
of the West (and especially the U.S.). Seif expressed his
conviction that the step toward the National Congress was a
historic step toward strengthening the internal opposition
and laying the groundwork for democratic reforms in Syria.


3. (C) HEALTH CONCERNS: Separately, Seif noted that he
planned to meet June 21 with Syrian Vice President Dr. Najah
al-Attar to request permission to leave Syria for treatment
of his recently diagnosed prostate cancer. At that meeting,
he would present Attar a report in which a local
German-trained Syrian specialist described the cancer as
being in the second phase and requiring treatment outside
Syria. (Note: Seif is currently prohibited from
international travel because of a seven-year "rights ban"
following his April 2002 conviction and sentencing for
"trying to change the constitution by illegal means." End
Note.) Seif expressed hope that Attar would permit him to
travel to Germany, where he would seek treatment for both his
cancer and for a long-standing heart condition.


4. (C) COMMENT: While the expansion of the DD group into a
National Congress would significantly broaden the internal
opposition, Seif seems overly optimistic about the ability of
group members to function under the radar of Syrian security
services. And while we cannot judge whether the regime will
allow Seif to travel, it has not been sympathetic in the past
to medical emergencies of other opposition members such as
Alawite regime critic Aref Dalila who continues to serve out
his 10-year sentence despite serious health problems.
CORBIN