Syria may make good on '89 withdrawal deal
Monday, thousands of anti-government protesters demonstrated in Beirut's capital. They demanded the resignation of their pro-Syrian government a week after the assassination of former prime minister Rafik Hariri, who opposed Syria's continued presence in his country.
The protests by throngs shouting "Syria out" came as Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa met in Damascus with Syrian President Bashar Assad. Moussa said Assad told him Syria would move to withdraw its forces soon, in accordance with the Taif agreement in 1989.
The deal, negotiated by Hariri, committed Syria to shifting its troops in Lebanon to the eastern Bekaa Valley. The accord also stipulated that Syria and Lebanon should agree on a timetable for a complete pullout. That schedule has yet to be finalized.
Syria, which has pledged before to honor the agreement, has made only minor withdrawals.
But Hariri's death in a bombing Feb. 14 has refocused attention on Syria's presence in Lebanon, where it is the chief power broker. Monday in Brussels, President Bush called on Syria to withdraw its forces. The United States pulled its ambassador out of Syria for consultations last week to protest a suspected link between Hariri's death and Syria.
"The Lebanese people have the right to be free, and the United States and Europe share an interest in an independent, democratic Lebanon," Bush said. "Our shared commitment to democratic progress is being tested in Lebanon, a once-thriving country that now suffers under the influence of an oppressive neighbor."
Syria has denied any involvement in the assassination.
The salvo of censure targeting Syria after Hariri's assassination has prompted some Syrians to publicly urge their leaders to pull the troops out of Lebanon apparently in defiance of a government that has not regularly tolerated dissent.
A statement signed by more than 30 Syrian intellectuals and human rights activists addressed to their Lebanese counterparts said, "We support your demand for the Syrian withdrawal of the Syrian army from Lebanon and in correcting the Syrian-Lebanese relationship." But the group added, "We are extremely painful and angry to see and hear that some Lebanese are insulting Syria and its people without (it) being guilty."
Lawmaker Hashem al-Akkad said he would propose forming a committee to study the "Lebanese case" at Syria's 250-seat Parliament. "Syria is getting no benefits in Lebanon," Akkad said. "We are spending millions of dollars. The Lebanese should know that quite well."
But there was no official word on the possible withdrawal beyond Arab League chief Moussa's comments Monday.
A presidential statement released after Moussa and Assad met said only that they had reviewed the "latest developments and preparations for convening the upcoming March Arab summit in Algeria."
But Fayez Sayegh, editor in chief of the state-run Al-Thawrah newspaper, downplayed the significance of Moussa's announcement, which he said "is not new."
"Syria is committed to agreements with the Lebanese parties, committed to the Taif Accord. ... When Damascus redeployed its troops five times over the past years, it was part of the agreement," Sayegh said.
Syria sent its forces into Lebanon in 1976 to try to impose a cease-fire on the country's warring Christian and Muslim factions. The civil war continued until 1990.
Syria regards Lebanon as a pivotal part of the Arab-Israeli dispute. Syria, with Iran, is among the major backers of the Lebanon-based Hezbollah terrorist group, which is dedicated to the destruction of Israel. If Lebanon were to sign a peace agreement with Israel, Syria would be the only Arab country technically at war with Israel.
Bassam Taleb, editor of the satirical Syrian magazine al-Dabbour (The Wasp) wrote in an editorial that the Syrian government should quit or bow to popular demand for change.
"It is supposed that you (the government) should be in the lead in caring for our interests," he wrote. "But if those who complain outnumber your advocates, then you would rather quit and leave."
Contributing: Wire reports
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