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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| US links Syria to Hariri killing |
| 2005-02-16 |
| The Bush administration recalled its ambassador to Syria on Tuesday to protest what it sees as Syria's link to the murder of the former prime minister of Lebanon, as violent anti-Syrian protests erupted in Beirut and several other Lebanese cities. At the United Nations, the administration also demanded that Syria withdraw its troops from Lebanon, and the Security Council called for an urgent investigation into the killing of the former prime minister, Rafik Hariri, who died Monday with 13 others when a huge car bomb blew up his motorcade in downtown Beirut. Investigators in Lebanon said they had come to no conclusion yet as to who carried out the attack. But Lebanese opposition leaders joined with the Bush administration in linking Syria to the bombing. Mr. Hariri, a billionaire developer, was the central figure in the country's rebuilding after a devastating 15-year civil war that ended in 1990, and his death aroused fears that the country could descend again into unrest. In Beirut, large crowds went to the site of the explosion, which investigators said appeared to be the work of a suicide attacker who managed to drive in between cars of Mr. Hariri's motorcade. Another theory was that the bomb had been placed in a sewer or under the pavement. Though there were some in Lebanon who argued that the murder might have been engineered by Al Qaeda, presumably to punish Mr. Hariri for his ties to Saudi Arabia, demonstrators mobilized throughout the country to blame Syria. In Damascus, Syrian officials continued to vigorously deny involvement in the explosion. In Sidon, Mr. Hariri's hometown, Syrian workers were attacked by dozens of protesters before the police intervened, and hundreds of Lebanese marched with black banners and pictures of the slain leader. A mob also attacked a Beirut office of Syria's ruling Baath Party. Thousands of protesters also massed in the northern port city of Tripoli, according to Reuters. Many analysts in Lebanon said Syria had reason to punish Mr. Hariri because he had been the leader in trying to block a new term for President Émile Lahoud, a Maronite Christian who is an ally of Syria. Failing that effort, which had the backing of the United States and France, Mr. Hariri supported a resolution at the United Nations Security Council last year also pushed by Washington and Paris demanding that Syria withdraw its 14,000 troops. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other American officials said the suspected Syrian complicity in the bombing was the latest in a series of hostile acts, including what they contend is Syria's support of the insurgency in Iraq and of groups carrying out violent attacks on civilians in Israel that are aimed at disrupting peace talks with the Palestinians. The Syrian information minister called the bombing "an act of terrorism, a crime that seeks to destabilize Lebanon." The minister, Mahdi Dakhl-Allah, also deplored the anti-Syrian violence and called on the Lebanese to "remain united and strong and continue to reject domestic strife and foreign intervention." Syria has played the dominant role in Lebanon's politics since it moved troops into the country in the 1970's. At the United Nations, meanwhile, at the behest of the United States the Security Council deplored the bombing as a threat to Lebanon's democratic process. Without assigning blame, it called on Secretary General Kofi Annan to report back to Council members on what happened. The killing of Mr. Hariri, a close ally of the United States and France, sent fears throughout the Middle East, where memories of Lebanon's civil war are fresh and concerns were sharpened that the delicate balance among Christians and Shiite and Sunni Muslims could come unhinged at a time when sectarian conflict is afflicting nearby Iraq. In recent weeks, the United States has been increasing pressure on Syria, focusing on Syria's troop presence in Lebanon and its suspected support of the Iraq insurgency and of anti-Israel violence. Ms. Rice acknowledged that the recall of Ambassador Margaret Scobey was prompted by more than Mr. Hariri's death. The removal of Ambassador Scobey, she said, "relates to, unfortunately, the fact that the relationship has been for some time not moving in a positive direction, but this event in Lebanon, of course, is the proximate cause of the withdrawal." Appearing at a meeting with the Egyptian foreign minister, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Ms. Rice also acknowledged, however, that the identities of those who carried out the bombing attack were unknown. "We're not laying blame," she asserted. "It needs to be investigated." Since taking office last month, Ms. Rice has adopted a tough line against Syria, effectively signaling the end of what administration officials said had been a heated internal debate about whether its role in the Middle East was helpful or not to American interests. For a time last year, some American officials had argued that cooperation of the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, on some issues should be rewarded, citing Syria's limited help in shutting down Syrian bases used by insurgents fighting in Iraq, and curbing the flow of money across the border that is suspected of aiding the insurgents. But in recent weeks, the United States changed its approach, in part influenced by mounting concerns in Israel over Syria's alleged help to Hezbollah and other militant organizations accused of supporting attacks on Israelis. In going after Syria, the Bush administration also appeared to be sending a tough message to Syria's ally, Iran, which Washington says is supplying the financing for the attacks on Israelis. Included in the reasons for withdrawing the American ambassador from Damascus, the State Department spokesman, Richard A. Boucher, said Tuesday, was "the continued presence and operational activities of international terrorist groups and the Iranian regime on and through Syrian territory." The decision to withdraw Ambassador Scobey was acknowledged by American officials as a symbolic step tantamount to a downgrading of diplomatic relations, because no date was announced for her return. Administration officials acknowledged that with relations at a low point for some time, few other sanctions were available. "In a way, we're almost sanctioned out on Syria," said one official. "There's not much left that we can do." In Lebanon, meanwhile, the talk of Syria's involvement was strong. "Lebanon is essential to Syria," said Adnan Arakchi, an associate of Mr. Hariri who serves in Parliament, explaining why he thought Syria sought to punish Mr. Hariri for trying to reduce its influence. "Giving Lebanon up is like putting a noose around its neck." Since the 1970's, Syria has used its troop presence in Lebanon to dominate Lebanese politics, at the time with the blessing of American and Israeli leaders. Now, however, Syria's presence is widely regarded as a destructive factor in the region even as some concede that it has added a measure of stability. Opponents of Mr. Lahoud and his Syrian backers were the quickest to blame Syria for Mr. Hariri's death. In Washington, some consideration was being given to invoking the Patriot Act, signed after the Sept. 11 attacks, which might allow the United States to act against financial transactions between American and Syrian businesses or subsidiaries. That step appeared to be held in reserve, for the time being, to give Syria more of a chance to cooperate with American demands. But some experts said an American-led confrontation with Syria, and by extension Iran, in the name of democracy and demanding removal of Syrian troops, could backfire. "Syria is low-hanging fruit compared to Iran," said Martin Indyk, a former Middle East official in the Clinton administration and now director of the Saban Center at the Brookings Institution, meaning that Syria, a poor country, may be easier to pressure than oil-rich Iran. Mr. Indyk explained that the danger of getting pulled into a war in Lebanon is that it would make more difficult the pursuit of American interests in more strategic parts of the Middle East, particularly Iraq, Israel and the Palestinian territories. "The administration may find that what started out as a sideshow in Lebanon could become a main game," he added. "If Lebanon descends into hell, and it can, and Hezbollah starts firing into northern Israel, we may find ourselves preoccupied in a situation of questionable importance to the United States." "This regime is backed by the Syrians," said Walid Jumblatt, a Druse leader in Lebanon. "This is the regime of terrorists and terrorism that was able yesterday to wipe out Rafik al-Hariri." |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #1 But in recent weeks, the United States changed its approach, in part influenced by mounting concerns in Israel over Syria’s alleged help to Hezbollah and other militant organizations accused of supporting attacks on Israelis. Which is why, IMHO, that Hariri was blown up at the very same time that Shalom was visiting Chirac "to discuss the issue of the inclusion of the Hizbullah on the EU list of proscribed terrorist organizations, ahead of the EU discussion on the matter on February 16. Foreign [Israeli] Minister Shalom will also raise the issue of the Iranian threat, and the interest in renewing and expanding ties with the countries of North Africa and the Gulf." |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-02-16 8:42:47 AM |