TFLE01: SYRIA SITREP 02 AS OF 1230 LOCAL, MONDAY,

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 DAMASCUS 003485

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

PARIS FOR WALLER, LONDON FOR TSOU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 7/16/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV SY LE
SUBJECT: TFLE01: SYRIA SITREP 02 AS OF 1230 LOCAL, MONDAY,
JULY 17, 2006


Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Stephen A. Seche for reasons 1.4 b/d


1. (S) Summary: Initial eyewitness reports estimated that
as many as 20,000 Syrians participated in a SARG-orchestrated
demonstration July 17 in downtown Damascus. Protesters
mainly expressed pro-SARG and pro-Hizballah messages.
Separately on July 17, the Syrian MFA's Protocol Director
summoned the Charge to protest for the second time in two
weeks a lack of security at a demonstration in front of a
Syrian diplomatic office in New York. The DAO reported that
Syrians are defensively dispersing in and out of garrison
areas in case of any Israeli attack. Observed activity did
not appear offensive in nature. As a precautionary measure
due to the Damascus protest, the U.S. Embassy closed to the
public the morning of July 17, with the exception of the ACS
Unit, which was fully staffed and functioning. Following an
EAC (septel),Embassy personnel were called to work, as
needed, for the afternoon. End Summary.

POLITICAL/MILITARY


2. (S) The following were political/military updates:

-- Initial eyewitness reports estimated that between 10,000
to 20,000 Syrians participated in a SARG-orchestrated
demonstration July 17 near the Central Bank in downtown
Damascus. Some demonstrators carried pro-regime banners and
pictures of Syrian President Bashar al-Asad, while others
waved Hizballah flags, signs and photos of Hizballah leader
Hassan Nasrallah. Still others displayed pro-Palestinian,
"Solidarity with Lebanon," and anti-Israeli messages. There
were no obvious anti-U.S. sentiments evident. The
demonstration, which was scheduled to begin at 0900, began to
break up at 1045 local time, with protesters dispensing
gradually. Syrian police effectively prevented a small group
of protesters from approaching the Embassy.

-- The Syrian MFA's Director of Protocol, Amir Smadi,
summoned the Charge to his office July 17 to protest what he
termed a lack of security July 16 during a demonstration in
front of "the Syrian Chancery" in New York. (Note: We
presume he was referring to a publicized protest by the
Coalition for Jewish Concerns that was scheduled to take
place in front of the Syrian Mission to the UN in Manhattan,
according to a IsraelNationalNews.com report.) This was the
second time in two weeks that the MFA has raised the issue of
inadequate security at Syrian diplomatic missions with the
Charge, but the protocol director did not repeat a previous
Syrian assertion that Syrian protection for the U.S. Embassy
in Damascus depended on reciprocal U.S. security for Syrian
facilities. Charge promised to look into the matter. Smadi
repeated a previous promise that the SARG would issue visas
to all Americans crossing from Lebanon into Syria (and
lengthen the duration of validity to seven to ten days),
including to three TDY consular officers from Embassy Cairo
whose services may be required in the event of a large influx
of Amcits into Syria.

-- Syria Information Minister Bilal Mohsen said July 16 that
the SARG would retaliate immediately to any Israeli attack on
Syrian territory "with a firm and direct response whose
timing and methods are unlimited," according to an AP report.

-- The Emir of Qatar, Hamad Bin Khalifa al Thani telephoned
Asad on July 16 to discuss the Israel-Lebanon conflict and
the weekend's meeting of Arab Foreign Ministers in Cairo,
according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

-- Syrian Ambassador to the U.S. Imad Mustapha gave an July
16 interview to CNN's Wolf Blitzer, in which he denied that
Syria provided military training or equipment to Hizballah.
He avoided Blitzer's question about the trans-shipment of
materiel from Iran into Lebanon, saying, "This is something
for the military intelligence to decide." Mustapha promised
that all American citizens without exception could go into
Syria regardless of their visa status.

-- Italian PM Romano Prodi spoke with Asad on Saturday, July
15 in the first such high-level contact between the Syrian
leader and a Western official since the February 2005
assassination of former Lebanese PM Rafik Hariri.

-- Syria's Ba'ath Party (in its typical ossified boilerplate

DAMASCUS 00003485 002 OF 002


language) published a communique that stated that "the Syrian
people were ready to extend full support to the Lebanese
people and their heroic resistance to remain steadfast and
confront the barbaric Israeli aggression for its crimes."

-- Syria's Ambassador to London Sami Khiyami said July 14
that Syria wanted to stay out of the conflict between Israel
and Lebanon and that it was trying to restrain Hizballah from
firing missiles into northern Israel, according to an AP
report. Khiyami added that while Hizballah was a "completely
independent movement", Syria has "good relations" with it,
the AP reported.

-- In conversations over the weekend, PD FSN noted that most
of his Syrian contacts blamed Israel and the U.S. for the
destruction in Lebanon. A few people blamed Hizballah and
its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, for provoking the Israelis, but
this represented a minority view among intellectuals and
ordinary citizens.

-- The DAO reported that Syrians are defensively dispersing
in and out of garrison areas as precautionary measures
against an increase in tensions with Israel. Observed
activity did not appear offensive in nature.

CONSULAR


3. (U) The following are consular updates:

-- Embassy Damascus was closed to the public the morning of
July 17, with the exception of the ACS Unit, which was fully
staffed and functioning. On July 16, the ACS unit serviced
120 Americans through walk-in service, in addition to phone
service.

-- A U.S. family reported that they had successfully departed
Lebanon July 15 by road via the Syria crossing of Masna,
paying USD 80 in bribes and visa fees. From the Syria-Jordan
border, they paid USD 70 for a taxi to Amman, although they
noted that others were reportedly paying up to USD 150.

-- Norwegian, Austrian and Swedish diplomats in Damascus
reported July 16 that they were bringing their nationals out
of Lebanon overland via the Lebanese city of Tripoli to the
Syrian city of Homs, with lengthy delays at the border of up
to five hours, according to a Canadian diplomat.

ECON/COMMERCIAL


4. (U) The following are Econ/Commercial updates:

-- Most airlines in Damascus are fully booked at least
through July 26, and there are reports indicating that
flights through early August are filling up quickly.

-- Several regional airlines, including those from Qatar and
the Emirates, have arranged extra flights to Damascus to
respond to a flood of demands from those fleeing Lebanon.

-- Contrary to a rumor that British Airways would temporarily
stop service to Syria, airline officials said they would
continue flights. In contrast to normal BA service, however,
the July 17 flight was only scheduled to service Syria's
northern city of Aleppo, with Damascus passengers being flown
up on Syria Air to catch the BA flight. A BA official
suggested that the change was for security reasons, but did
not elaborate.
SECHE