A U.S. official said defector 's claims about al Qaeda cooperation are ` ` consistent '' . al - Fares , former Syrian ambassador to Iraq , is the highest - ranking diplomatic defector . The most senior Syrian diplomat to defect and publicly embrace his country 's uprising is calling for a foreign military intervention to topple President Bashar al-Assad . ` ` I tried to persuade the regime ... to change its view of the people , '' he says . Syria denies accusations of massacres and attacking civilians .
A U.S. official said defector 's claims about al Qaeda cooperation are ` ` consistent '' . al - Fares , former Syrian ambassador to Iraq , is the highest - ranking diplomatic defector . ` ` I tried to persuade the regime ... to change its view of the people , '' he says . Syria denies accusations of massacres and attacking civilians .