Assad Monday pledged to introduce reforms within months to address a wave of protests against his rule, but blamed saboteurs for the unrest and warned that no deal could be reached with gunmen. Assad said a national dialogue would start soon to review new legislation including laws on parliamentary elections, the media, and allowing political parties other than his Baath Party, as well as look at possible changes to the constitution. Activists and analysts dismissed his promises, saying they failed to engage the demands of protesters who for three months have defied a fierce military crackdown in rallying for greater freedoms, posing the gravest challenge to his 11-year tenure. Syrian rights groups say at least 1,300 civilians have been killed and 10,000 people detained since March. The United States said it wanted to see “action, not words” from Assad. Turkey, which has had to cope with 10,000 refugees fleeing from the crackdown across its borders, said the speech was ‘not enough' and called for broad democratic reform. After Assad's speech, delivered at Damascus University, demonstrators hit the streets of the capital's suburbs and in the coastal city of Latakia, activists and residents said. “The regime has no realization that this is a mass street movement demanding freedom and dignity,” opposition figure Walid Al-Bunni said. “Assad has not said anything to satisfy the families of the 1,400 martyrs or the national aspiration of the Syrian people for the country to become a democracy.” US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told a briefing: “Bashar Al-Assad has been making promises to his people for years, for weeks. What's important now is action, not words.” Acknowledging the economic damage done by the unrest, Assad urged Syrians to help restore confidence in their economy. “The most dangerous thing we face in the next stage is the weakness or collapse of the Syrian economy, and a large part of the problem is psychological,” he said. “We have to distinguish between (those who have legitimate demands) and saboteurs. The saboteurs are a small group that tried to exploit the kind majority of the Syrian people to carry out their many schemes,” he said.
