On 18 March 2011, the most important civil movement in Syria's modern history was launched in the streets of Dara'a. Inspired by the revolutionary spirit of the Arab spring, it was peaceful. Anti-corruption and anti-authoritarian, it combined local and national demands for democratic change.
In the second week of this mobilisation, I launched what became known as "the three no's": no to violence, sectarianism and external intervention. As a strategy, this would ensure the territorial integrity and unity of the Syrian people. Our challenge was to break out of the province of Dara'a into all of Syria, and we needed to ensure that the uprising attracted majority support.
But this broadening of the struggle took place in the absence of unity within opposition forces. Powerful players tried to recruit the tens of thousands of young people who went out in public for the first time to their own regional or international causes. Within the first three months many players had intervened in the conflict, which was seen by many, inside and outside Syria, as an opportunity to change some basic geopolitical facts about the Middle East...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jun/22/syria-opposition-led-astray-by-violence