Syrian President Bashar Assad believes that his country has overcome its two-month-long political crisis, the Al Watan daily said in a special edition on Wednesday.
The statement came shortly after the opposition call for a general day-long strike on Wednesday went unheeded.
“We have overcome the crisis, but domestic security forces have made mistakes,” the Syrian president said, adding that “thousands of police officers will undergo refresher training in the near future.”
The Syrian human rights group Sawasiah says more than 800 people have been killed since the unrest against the country’s longtime ruler began in mid-March.
Syrian authorities claim the protests were organized by Islamic extremists seeking to seize power in the country.
MOSCOW, May 18 (RIA Novosti)