Former CIA Operative: Assad Regime ‘Panicking,’ Will ‘Act Irrationally’ After Attack

 

Author and former CIA case officer Robert Baer shared some troubling information with CNN’s audience on Friday as President Barack Obama’s administration makes the case for intervention in the Syrian civil war. He said that he spoke with officials inside Syria who told him that Bashar al-Assad’s regime is “panicking” and will “act irrationally” if a Western attack appears to have the objective of toppling his regime.

RELATED: CNN Reporter: Obama’s Claim U.S. Directly Threatened by Syrian Chemical Weapons ‘Very Dubious’

“I just talked to Damascus today – some people in the regime — and this regime is panicking,” Baer said. “They’ve made it very clear that if any of these strikes like regime change, if they hit, for instance, the fourth division, the president’s brother’s division, Bashar al-Assad will act irrationally.”

He said that those actions could take the form of attacks on neighboring countries or further use of chemical weapons.

Furthermore, Baer said, the army appears to be “disintegrating” which makes their control over chemical arms even more dangerous.

Watch the clip below via CNN:

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An experienced broadcaster and columnist, Noah Rothman has been providing political opinion and analysis to a variety of media outlets since 2010. His work has appeared in a number of political opinion journals, and he has shared his insights with television and radio personalities across the country.