Washington seizes on UN report to threaten Syria

[IndianaGreen]

Washington seizes on UN report to threaten Syria
By Bill Van Auken
24 October 2005

In an article published Sunday, the Israeli daily Haaretz pointed to the way in which these new findings against Syria are being manipulated for similar political purposes:

“(W)hy was an incomplete interim report necessary?” Haaretz asked. “The answer lies in Washington and Beirut. Washington needs some sort of incriminating evidence against Syria to goad Damascus, regarded as abetting terror in Iraq, by means of the UN Security Council. The Syria Accountability Act, which allowed President George W. Bush to impose partial economic sanctions, is not harsh enough, according to the US administration. US trade with Syria is about $300 million a year, to Europe’s more than $7 billion. Bush therefore needs European cooperation to get Syria’s attention.”

Beyond sanctions, there are mounting indications that the Bush administration is considering opening up a second front in its war of aggression in Iraq. In an article entitled “Plans: Next, War on Syria,” Newsweek magazine reported earlier this month: “Deep in the Pentagon, admirals and generals are updating plans for possible US military action in Syria and Iran.... The Defense Department unit responsible for military planning for the two troublesome countries is ‘busier than ever,’ an administration official says.”

There have been press reports of US attacks on Syria, some attributed to fighting in western Iraq spilling over the border and others to deliberate operations by American special forces units.

Just days before the release of the UN panel’s interim report, Secretary of State Rice appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to testify on US policy in the Middle East. Asked if the administration was preparing for military action against Syria, she replied, “I don’t think the president ever takes any of his options off the table concerning anything to do with military force.”

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2005/oct2005/syri-o24.shtml

[Judi Lynn]

1. Truly depressing bully words from Ms. Rice.Can't wait 'til they leave.

Our country has never seen more hideous people.

Another view of the UN report, in Syria:

Monday, October 24, 2005. 8:03pm (AEST)
Thousands of Syrians protest against UN inquiry
Chanting anti-American slogans, thousands of Syrians protested in the capital against a United Nations inquiry they say unfairly blames Damascus for the killing of Lebanese former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri.

Demonstrators say Washington instigated the UN probe to pile pressure on Syria for its struggle against Israel and opposition to the 2003 invasion of neighbouring Iraq.

"We don't fear America, down with America," some youths chanted.

Others carried banners that read: "Syria is not another Iraq".
(snip/...)

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200510/s1489632.htm