Syria's Assad vows 'iron hand' against opponents

Bashar Assad insists he still has his peoples support despite the 10-month-old uprising against him.In his first speech since June, Assad repeated claims that a foreign conspiracy and terrorists are behind the unrest not true reform-seekers.Our priority now is to regain security which we basked in for decades, and this can only be achieved by hitting the terrorists with an iron hand, Assad said in a nearly two-hour speech at Damascus University, where he stood at a podium flanked by Syrian flags. We will not be lenient with those who work with outsiders against the country.Assad also lashed out at the Arab League, saying the Cairo-based bloc failed to protect Arab interests. The League has suspended Syria and sent a team of monitors to assess whether the regime is abiding by an Arab-brokered peace plan that Assad agreed to on Dec. 19. The moves were humiliating for Syria, which considers itself a powerhouse of Arab nationalism.The Arab League failed for six decades to protect Arab interests, Assad said. We shouldnt be surprised its failed today.Kuwaits official news reported that a group of Arab League observers were attacked in the northern city of Latakia on Monday and two Kuwaiti army officers were lightly injured.KUNA news agency said the observers were attacked by unknown protesters on Monday. Online footage posted by activists online showed what appears to be a white Arab League vehicle swarmed by pro-Assad protesters in Latakia, some of them dancing on top of the car.The president has made only four public speeches since the anti-government uprising began in March, inspired by the revolutions sweeping the Arab world. The regimes crackdown on dissent has killed thousands and led to international isolation and sanctions.Tuesdays speech differed little from his previous appearances, in that Assad struck a more firm tone and reiterated claims of conspiracy and promises of reform. --Agencies