At the same time
others were also thinking about the events of the day, though they knew nothing
of what James had just done with the U.N. negotiators. Those others were the
men who had been at that meeting with James. All of them were thinking and
talking about this new arrival. They were talking about the sudden change in
the direction and methods used by this stranger during the talks. The Lion was
still traveling back to his own stronghold, located well outside the main city.
He had said little since leaving the NATO safe area. Until he was outside the
main city all of his attention had been focused on his surroundings. He knew
that all of the other groups at that meeting, and even the two groups who hadn't
been there, would have liked nothing better than to see him dead. They feared
him and wanted him dead, so they wouldn't have to fear him. They also believed
that if they could be the one to defeat him, it would give them his power and
influence to add to their own. That should be enough to earn them even more
influence and power with other groups. It was nothing certain, but it would be
a chance at controlling the nation in their eyes.
Now that he was
outside in the more open countryside Sargon left the watching for danger to
those who traveled with him. He started to think about this new change in the
situation. He had been one of those who had asked for this man to come, but
that had been little more than a tactical delay for him. But now he wondered if
it hadn't become something much greater than just a simple delay. This man
truly was a warrior! There had been no fear in his eyes. In fact there had been
a challenge; as well as respect in his eyes. Respect was something Sargon
hadn't seen before in the eyes of those trying to negotiate for peace. Before those
eyes had held only fear, disbelief, and perhaps even hate. They had held no
trust or respect for him or anyone else and he had none for them... but this
man was different. First he had come out of the safety of the heavily guarded
bunker to greet them at the very edge of the secured area. Then he had spoken
to all of them openly and defiantly. There had been nothing soft or timid about
his manner or his words. He was young, even younger than Sargon himself, who
was considered to be too young to be a leader of any real worth by most outside
his own followers. Still this stranger seemed to have more wisdom and certainly
more courage than anyone Sargon had seen before. Especially among those who
came from outside the country. It would
be interesting to see who and what this stranger really was.
The days passed
slowly at first and then the men started to come in to talk. Though when they
came in most still wanted to meet with the full U.N. contingent. They often
spent as much time trying to convince the U.N. negotiators that they were the
best choice for forming a new government as they did talking with James. There
were two groups that didn't want to meet with U.N. though. They wanted to meet
only with James, Sabella, and Aadila. One was the Lion, Sargon Najjar. He
insisted on that condition or he wouldn't come in again. The other was
something of a surprise. In fact it was a total surprise to many, because he
had never actually come in before. He always sent someone to every meeting, but
seldom was it the same man and they seldom had much to say during the talks.
They listened and only rarely spoke. When word arrived that he would come in,
the negotiators were ecstatic. That is until they heard his conditions. He
would meet only with James, actually with only Aadila and James. Nobody else
would be allowed into the meeting. That was the only way he would agree to any
meeting. He had been the primary force behind the request for James to come in
the first place. The U.N. negotiators weren't happy about being left out, but
they were still excited that this man might actually come in personally.
Omar Nassar was a
very powerful man among the Sunni Muslims. Despite all of the fighting and
bloodshed he had managed to remain a relatively wealthy man. In addition to his
wealth he was known to be generous to those who followed him. He was also known
to be a skilled and brutal fighter from the earlier days of the conflicts
inside Syria, though he seldom left his secured areas now. Of the six major
groups left in contention for power the two that had chosen to meet only with
James, and not the U.N., had the most power and influence. Sargon was also a
Sunni Muslim, but his power rested in the more rural and poorer areas of Syria.
Omar held his power inside the cities, but mostly among the most well off of
the Sunni. The other four who had continued to include the U.N. in their
meetings had far less influence than either of these two. Sunni Muslims made up well over half the
population of Syria. The most extreme group was headed up by Asu Hussain,
another Sunni Muslim. His power was in the cities, but almost entirely among
the poorest of the people. Abdel fattah Kassab was the most pro-western and
actually had the most influence among the Christians, though he was a Sunni
Muslim himself. One of the two James had not met before was Aarif Asad. He was
leader of the Alawis Muslims and very dangerous. They had once been in power
and had no intention of giving that power up easily. They were almost as
anti-western as Asa Hussain's people were. The last of the groups was headed by
Khebat Shadid. He was very intelligent and had a lot of influence and outside
support, but as leader of the Kurds he was out numbered and had little hope for
taking power without help from another group.
No comments:
Post a Comment