Der Spiegel: Syria's former vice president prepares government in exile

Syria's former vice president Abdel Halim Khaddam reportedly said he was preparing a government in exile as he is convinced that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will be forced to step down this year.

"I would not exclude any political group (from joining) as long as it respects the democratic process," Khaddam said in an interview with the German weekly Der Spiegel.

He also repeated the opinion he has given in other interviews that Basahr al-Assad had a role in ordering the assassination last year of Lebanon's former prime minister Rafiq Hariri, whose killing is under investigation by the United Nations.

"The fall (of the Assad regime) has begun. I do not think the regime will survive this year," he said.

About a government in exile, Khaddam said he was open to including Islamists groups and members of the Baathist party, even though he was expelled from the party's ranks at the beginning of this year.