BBC (Thursday): Syrian troops 'will quit Lebanon'

From the BBC Online
Dated Thursday February 24 13:23 GMT (5:23 am PST)

Syrian troops "will quit Lebanon"

Syria says it will co-operate with the UN over implementing a resolution calling for Syrian troops to leave Lebanon, a senior minister has said.

Deputy Foreign Minister Waleed al-Mualem said future withdrawals would be carried out in line with the deal which ended the Lebanese civil war.

Pressure has grown on Syria to pull out of Lebanon since the killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

In 2004, a UN resolution demanded Syria withdraw its remaining 15,000 troops.

The rationale for placing Syrian troops in Lebanon years ago no longer seems to be valid. The assassination of Hariri demonstrates that the presence of Syrians in Lebanon is a destabilizing factor in Lebanese politics.

This move is long overdue.

Watch Bush take credit for this troop withdraw when it happens just like he did with the Iraq elections

this case.

who were about to be wiped out by the Druze/Hizbullah

http://www.arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=59346&d=22&m=2&y=2005

1976
 January 1976 Syrian army enters Lebanon
1978
 March 1978 Israeli troops invade Lebanon

http://www.ehistory.com/world/CountryView.cfm?ID=119

So when Syria leaves, will Israel leave
the Litani River Watershed? The
Golan Heights? Whoa! Watch out!

However, there are many ways to derail talks between Israel and the Palestinians and I don't think Israel wants to complicate matters with an incursion into Lebanon.

Something to watch out for is what this might mean to internal politics in Syria. Syria has been treating Lebanon as a colony for years and not everybody in Syria is going to like giving it up. If Bashar Assad were a strong leader, one might call this a "bold move" on his part. As it is, it may be for him simply foolish.

There's daggers in men's smiles.
--Macbeth, (2.3.142)

in it's political arsenal.

Any "peaceful moves" by Israel are only aimed
at clearing the decks for action.

It's been looking for a few weeks like Syria was going to withdraw.
There was a story about offering to withdraw even before the Hariri
killing. I was even thinking (:tinfoilhat:) that it might have
prompted the killing.

But I don't think anybody knows what happens after the withdrawal.

" 'Syria believes that before accelerating the rhythm of its withdrawals, it will be necessary for the Lebanese army and security forces to be in a position to fill the vacuum without damaging the security of Lebanon or Syria.' "

What vacuum? Hizbullah's already positioned wherever there's an Israeli border. The rest of the border is with Syria.

Does Syria think that its troops are keeping the Christian and Druze insurgents from staging a coup?

Syria is girding for war, hoping for
peace.

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0217/dailyUpdate.html

Syria's "wanting to avoid a vacuum" excuse can even begin to fly.

The Lebanese have a well deserved reputation
as traders/merchants.

I wonder what "currency" they're trading?

http://in.news.yahoo.com/050224/137/2jtmc.html

Thursday February 24, 10:39 PM

Syria says ready to work with UN on Lebanon pullout

DAMASCUS (Reuters) - Syria said on Thursday it planned to pull back more troops to eastern Lebanon in line with a 16-year-old agreement and Lebanon's defence minister said troops would be on the move soon.

Damascus was ready to work with the United Nations to implement a Security Council resolution demanding its 14,000 troops leave Lebanon, Deputy Foreign Minister Waleed al-Mualem said, an apparent response to international pressure.

Tens of thousands of Lebanese have taken to the streets to protest against Syria's military and political grip on its tiny neighbour since a huge bomb killed Lebanon's former prime minister Rafik al-Hariri in Beirut last week.

"Syria expresses its keen interest in cooperating with the envoy of the secretary-general of the United Nations to accomplish his mission in the best formula possible," Mualem told reporters, reading from a statement.

story: http://in.news.yahoo.com/050224/137/2jtmc.html

See...diplomacy CAN work.

"Following Mualem's remarks, Lebanese Defence Minister Abdel Rahim Mrad said it was clear the redeployment would go ahead.

"A redeployment to the Bekaa valley, according to Taif, will take place soon," Mrad told Reuters. "

--Which is to say, from the W. side of the country to the E. side.

"The important withdrawals that have been carried out so far and will be carried out later will be done in agreement with Lebanon against the backdrop of the Taif Accord and the mechanisms it entails," he said.

The accord said "withdrawal", with everything else pretty much up for grabs. So Syria could easily negotiate a withdrawal to downtown Beirut if Lahoud agreed, much less the Bekaa. But we know for a certainty how much Lahoud objects to anything Syrian.

I also wonder if all the Syrian workers that flooded into Lebanon are going home ...

Or is "withdrawal" a nod to Bush's abstinence programs?


Perhaps if Bush abstained from sticking his dick into other countries' asses....

Where they are more useful in defending against a Bush invasion.

,...forces for the neoCON occupation.

*sigh*

its control of the "Mukhabarat" secret police. Lebanon has 150,000 troops in its army while Syria has 13,000-15,000 actual troops on the ground in Lebanon. These troops rarely venture out of their barracks. It is Syria's control of the Secret Police that really "pisses off" most Lebanese. A lot of Lebanese have "disappeared" over the years! If Assad was really serious about "leaving" Lebanon he would dismantle this police structure. However Assad is in an economic dilema. About 1 million Syrians work in Lebanon where they tend to get the construction jobs because they are "Half-Price" labour compared to Lebanese workers. Most of the "Employers" are Lebanese and use the Syrian workers as "cheap" labour. A bit like American Employers and Latino workers situation.
Compared to Lebanon, Syria is an economic "Basketcase"! However the Lebanese capitalists need the cheap Syrian labour while Assad needs the employment and the repatriations of income returning to Syria! Both economies need each other!!!! Withdrawel of Syrian troops is the "easy" bit. The real problems are the "Secret Police" and the fact that both countries are economically entangled in such a way that both their economies would "suffer" severe shocks if "ALL" Syrians left Lebanon over night!!

A exploits B militarily, while B exploits A economically. An interesting situation.