Syrian Prime Minister Hijab removed from office for "desertion"?

Sources in Aleppo city said Syria is preparing a "decisive" general offensive to retake the city.

Syrian state television has reported that Syrian Prime Minister Riad Hijab has been fired, just two months after his appointment.

Mr. Riad Hijab (Source: Getty Images)

According to AFP, the director of the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdel Rahma, said that Mr. Hijab had fled, while some other groups said he had defected and joined the opposition.

If confirmed, Hijab would be the most senior Syrian government official to defect since the start of the crisis in the Middle Eastern country 17 months ago.

Reuters news agency also quoted Syrian television as saying that the country immediately appointed Deputy Prime Minister Omar Ghalawanji as interim Prime Minister to replace Mr. Hijab.

Syrian government sources said the appointment was aimed at restructuring the political apparatus.

Mr. Riad Hijab, former Minister of Agriculture of Syria, was appointed Prime Minister by President Bashar al-Assad exactly two months ago.

The decision to appoint Mr Hijab came after opposition groups boycotted Syria's newly elected parliament.

Mr. Hijab, 46 years old, served as Minister of Agriculture in the government of former Prime Minister Adel Safar, which was formed in April 2011, a month after the crisis broke out in Syria./.

According to Vietnam+M