The civil war in Syria has lasted more than a year and a half. (Creative Commons)

Syria's most prominent opposition body elected a new leader following trouble to unite with other dissident groups.

The Syrian National Council chose George Sabra, a leftist who had challenged the regime of Bashar al-Assad multiple times before the civil war, to lead the group. Sabra, a Christian and proponent of a secular revolution against Assad, will serve a half-year yerm. He was selected out of a body of 41 initial candidates in the SNC's secretariat.

After being selected, Sabra immediately pleaded for foreign powers to send weapons to the rebel forces. Despite army defectors and gains over Assad's territory, the Free Syrian Army remains outclassed in terms of firepower.

The SNC is meeting with other Syrian opposition groups in Doha, Qatar to tried to form a unified body against the current regime. The SNC was the most prominent political group to come out of the civil war, but after more than a year and a half of fighting, rebels are fractured and jihadists groups are entering the country. The first round of talks to unify the groups failed.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton earlier criticized the SNC for no longer being able to represent the people on the ground inside Syria.

Read more of Neon Tommy's coverage of Syria here.

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