Syrian President Attacks Oppositions, Mum on Reform

Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad attacked opposition protesters as tools of a foreign conspiracy against the country and offered no concrete plans for reform in a much-awaited address to parliament on Wednesday. In his first public statement since bloody protests erupted two weeks ago, he called the protestors traitors and accused them of sedition. Al-Assad’s speech angered many Syrians, as well as his moderate allies abroad, who favor stability but would like reform measures undertaken. Thousands of Syrian demonstrators took to the streets after the address, with protesters marching through the port city of Latakia and the restive southern town of Deraa chanting "freedom.”  The U.S. State Department dismissed the speech as lacking substance, saying it was easier to see conspiracy theories than to meet popular demand for reforms.