UK to give further £500k to aid opposition in Syria

BRITAIN will provide a further £500,000 to support Syria’s political opposition in the face of president Bashar Assad’s regime, the Foreign Secretary was to say.

William Hague was expected to announce the extra funding last night.

Mr Hague was to say the money would help “hard-pressed” opposition groups to document the regime’s violations. In his speech, he was to set out that he has “agreed to provide a further half a million pounds of British support to Syria’s political opposition”.

“It includes agreement in principle for practical non-lethal support to them inside Syria,” Mr Hague was due to say.

“It will help hard-pressed opposition groups and brave civil society organisations to document the regime’s violations and gain the skills and resources they need to help build a democratic future for Syria.”

The government has given £450,000 to the Syrian opposition over the last eight months.