Former Syrian Prime Minister Riyad Hijab, who crossed into Jordan after defecting last week, said on Tuesday that President Bashar al-Assad’s regime now controls only 30 percent of the country.

“Oh devoted revolutionaries, your revolution has become a model of effort and sacrifice for the sake of freedom and dignity,” Hijab was quoted by Al-Arabiya as having said during a news conference. “I assure you, from my experience and former position, that the regime is collapsing, spiritually and financially, as it escalates militarily.”