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Syria has a unique opportunity to fulfill the course of history

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  • Syria has a unique opportunity to fulfill the course of history

    The writing is on the wall. It is scrawled in very large, angry letters all over Beirut, and it can be seen in the office of French President Jacques Chirac, and it can be seen trailing, like graffiti, behind U.S. President George W. Bush wherever he goes. The question now is, "Is Damascus blind?"

    The writing says that Syria must leave Lebanon and grant to the Lebanese their right to determine their own affairs. Sooner or later, the prophecy inherent in the words will be fulfilled - they must. It is the course of history, and the momentum of Lebanese history has been gathering pace over the last few months: Since the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri last Monday, it has reached a fever pitch of pace.

    A mass demonstration in Beirut one week after Hariri's slaying was a statement of communal unity that has rarely been witnessed in Lebanon - it has been likened to the buildup to the country's 1943 independence from France. It was a declaration for the Lebanese longing for true sovereignty. It is a declaration being echoed in Washington and Paris: Last night in Brussels, Bush and Chirac issued a joint statement calling for the immediate withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon. They also reiterated their support for the UN investigation into Hariri's murder that is expected to begin work in Beirut this week. The European Union is also coming on board.

    It is a formidable international voice that has coalesced and is now demanding Damascus act wisely and fulfill historical inevitability - not next year, not in six months' time, but now. Certainly, the assembled voices say, Syria must withdraw before Lebanese national elections scheduled in May. These elections, Bush and Chirac insist, "can mark another milestone in Lebanon's return to independence and democracy if they are free and fair, conducted without outside interference, and guaranteed by international observers."

    The Lebanese opposition has been demanding the same conditions be fulfilled, under the auspices of a transitional government - this, of course, after the current, petrified pro-Syrian political entity has resigned.

    Is it possible that Syria is not blind and deaf? It is not, if the words of Syrian President Bashar Assad have meaning: On Sunday he assured Arab League secretary general Amr Moussa that Syria would honor the 1989 Taif Accord that halted Lebanon's long and bloody civil war, and pull its troops out. Damascus cannot go back on its word now. Indeed, not only must the troops must be pulled out, but the intelligence and "security" presence as well must go. Damascus must demonstrate to the international community that it values Lebanon's sovereignty. There is, in fact, a unique opportunity here for Damascus to nurture Lebanese independence, and to shed once and for all the image of a "protector."

    There is an urgent need for national dialogue in Lebanon, and Hizbullah secretary general Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has called for it. Syria could play its last significant role in Lebanese politics by promoting such a dialogue - an honest and open and, above all, purely Lebanese, dialogue - before withdrawing every one of its many arms of pervasive influence. One way or the other, this will be the course of history - may it be the course that is least painful for all concerned.

    - The baby will be back -

  • #2
    Syria always tried their best to subdue Lebannon. Advant of Rifat El Afat as (hereditary) head of state could not change that as he is pressured by a combination of his late father's legacy + his late father's brothers and croonies. Educated to behave the stalinist way, this bunch never stood Lebannon's economic successes. The only option for Syria is to see them GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO !!!!
    Alain
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    • #3
      Now taking bets --

      Syria, Iran, North Korea, or all of the above?

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      • #4
        I wished all the above, Iran, due to the clerics who continuously prevented elected President Khatami to work normally at any time during his two terms strenuous tenure and North Korea off course. Unfortunately those two are real big fishes in terms of weaponery and weaponery engineering
        Alain
        Thanks for visiting
        *Avimage's Monthly Slide list *
        *JetPhotos*
        Airliners*Pbase.com

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        • #5
          BTW, I love the happy end of Tom Clancy's Excecutive Order. A remote guided laser bomb smashes the Iranian leader home while the latter looks his death coming on his TV live ....
          Alain
          Thanks for visiting
          *Avimage's Monthly Slide list *
          *JetPhotos*
          Airliners*Pbase.com

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