Damascus Media Reaction: Al-Hariri Assassination

UNCLAS DAMASCUS 000668

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR PA, NEA/ARN, INR/IC/CD, INR/S:STHIBEAULT AND
JMCCARTER, VOA NEWS CA, NEA/PPD:CBOURGEOIS, DBENZE AND
AFERNANDEZ, IIP/G/NEA-SA RWINCHESTER
WHITE HOUSE FOR NSC
CENTCOM FOR CCPA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KMDR PREL KPAO OPRC SY
SUBJECT: Damascus Media Reaction: Al-Hariri Assassination
Anniversary, British Abuse Video, HAMAS, Iran (2/15)


1. Summary: Syrian papers reported a mass rally by Syrians in
occupied Golan observing the 24th anniversary of the 1982 strike,
called by the sons of occupied Golan to reject Israel's
annexation of the Golan and impose an Israeli identity on its
sons. Speakers emphasized that they stood behind President Asad's
leadership and rejected the threats and pressure on Syria. They
denounced the publication of cartoons on the prophet Mohammad in
Western media under the pretext of freedom of expression.
Speeches were delivered by Arabs who had been captives in Israeli
jails, former Lebanese Minister We'am Wahab, and Secretary
General of the Arab Socialist Movement Ahmed al-Ahmed.

The first anniversary of the Al-Hariri assassination was a lead
press story. A typical headline in Tishreen read "A rally of
rancor on Valentine Day. The Al-Hariri anniversary turns into a
platform to attack Syria. A forum for curses, insults and
charlatanism is held at the Martyrs Square in Beirut."

Syrian papers also featured a New York Times report confirming a
US scheme to foil HAMAS and cited a White House report denying
such a scheme.

End summary.


2. Selected Headlines:

"Syrian, Lebanese and Palestinian voices join in a celebration
commemorating the 24th anniversary of the 1982 strike announced
by the sons of occupied Golan to reject Israel's annexation of
the Golan" (Government-owned Al-Ba'th, 1/15)

"Reactions to campaign of misinformation continue. Nasrallah:
Lebanon is in a state of war with Israel. We will not relinquish
arms. Lebanese statements: The Shebaa Farms are Lebanese. Those
who cast doubts about the Lebanese identity of the farms seek to
legitimize the occupation" (Government-owned Tishreen, 2/15)

"A rally of rancor on Valentine Day. The Al-Hariri anniversary
turns into a platform to attack Syria. A forum for curses,
insults and charlatanism is held in Beirut's Martyrs Square.
Rancorous trade on Al-Hariri blood, impingement upon pan-Arab
principles, and national resistance" (Government-owned Tishreen,
2/15)

"Israel endeavors to drag Lebanon into civil strife" (Government-
owned Tishreen, 2/15)

"New York Time confirms and Washington denies a US scheme to foil
HAMAS. Mofaz is determined to proceed with the policy of
assassinations. Occupation forces continue shelling" (Government-
owned Tishreen, 2/15)

"Spain endeavors to promote an 'alliance of civilizations'. The
EU and Washington continue to defend Denmark. 57 Islamic
countries propose a draft UNSC resolution banning insults of
sanctities" (Government-owned Tishreen, 2/15)

"Six US soldiers killed or injured in Baghdad. Basra boycotts
British forces and calls for pulling out Danish forces"
(Government-owned Al-Ba'th, 2/15)

"A joint Russian-French proclamation on security and terrorism
issues. Iran is called upon to fully abide by its commitments"
(Government-owned Al-Ba'th, 2/15)


3. Editorial Block Quotes:

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"A Student Outdoing his Master"

--------------

Isam Dari, an editorialist in government-owned Tishreen,
commented (2/15): "Syria was the party most harmed by Al-
Hariri's assassination.... For a full year Syria has been, and
still is, the target of unprecedented campaigns of pressure,
accusations, lies, and threats against the background of the
heinous crime.... This means that those who killed Al-Hariri
basically targeted Syria and wanted to take revenge against it
and force it to change its conduct....
"Countries, organizations, and figures joined Washington in its
campaign of pressure and accusations against Syria. These
accusations were based on lies, fabrications, and deception....

"A Lebanese group claiming to be a majority in the parliament
has outdone its master in lying. If Iraq's invasion was based on
forged intelligence information -- and this information is from
the Americans, not from us -- the 'heroes' of hostility toward
Syria outdid their American masters at slyness, malice, and
lying. They took the initiative upon themselves. Not only did
they direct accusations to Syria immediately after every crime
committed in Lebanon, but they also fabricated false witnesses
and presented them on a golden platter to the international
investigation commission.... The truth will come out; the masks
will fall off. And the conspiracy will be foiled...."

-------------- -


"The First Anniversary: Who Killed Al-Hariri?"
-------------- --

Salim Abbud, an op-ed in government-owned Al-Thawra, commented
(2/15): "The March 14th forces in Lebanon are not really
interested in knowing who assassinated Rafiq al-Hariri.... These
forces, which were not united before Al-Hariri's assassination,
got together for three reasons or objectives. Firstly, to trade
on the Al-Hariri assassination. Secondly, to separate Lebanon
from its Arabism, spoil its relationship with Damascus, and
reject every Arab effort to heal the rift between Syria and
Lebanon and search for the truth calmly and with an open mind by
asking the necessary questions to reach the real killer, because
the aim of the real killer was to cause the earthquake that the
assassination brought about. Thirdly, to get Lebanon involved in
the American-Israeli scheme, which seeks to draft a new map for
the region, pressure and besiege Syria, revive the May 17th
agreement with Israel, and disarm the resistance, which defeated
Israel in the south...."

--------------
"Twisted Alignment"

--------------

Omar Jaftali, an editorialist in government-owned Tishreen,
commented (2/15): "At the time Israel continues its assaults
against south Lebanon and Israeli warplanes violate Lebanese
airspace, some Lebanese who volunteered to promote the Israeli-
American plan launch provocative statements against the Lebanese
resistance.... Aren't those who want to disarm the resistance,
which liberated south Lebanon in 2000 and which is responding to
the Israeli aggression and standing as a strong barrier in the
face of Israeli treachery, placing themselves in the service of
the American-Israeli plan? Aren't those who say the Israeli
withdrawal from the south was complete in accordance with
Resolution 425 and that there is no longer a need for the
national resistance, confirming their alliance with the
objectives, goals, and intentions of Lebanon's enemies....?

"The suspicious connections of these Lebanese have been
exposed.... Israel was and still is Lebanon's number one enemy
and the main instigator for chaos, evil, and tension in the
region. The attempts to promote its prejudiced plans will fail,
as its occupation of Lebanese territory failed. And these people
will not be served by their impingement upon the national and
pan-Arab choices of the Lebanese people."




--------------

"A Barbaric Viewpoint"
--------------
Bassam Radwan, a commentator in government-owned Tishreen,
commented (2/15): "If the barbaric and horrendous scene of
British occupation troops in Iraq beating, kicking, and clubbing
civilian and defenseless Iraqis in a manner that reflects
abhorrent and heinous sadism is not surprising, what is really
surprising, to the point of shock, is the comment made by
British Prime Minister Tony Blair on this crime and similar
crimes of occupation, whether in Iraq or Palestine....

"The strange irony here is that within the context of these
facts and photos, which seem to have been taken by someone who
takes pleasure in torturing and brutalizing young Iraqis, the
British prime minister, in an attempt to mitigate the effect of
the shock, stressed that what the world had seen was an
individual incident and that his troops, which participated in
the occupation of Iraq to promote freedom and democracy, enjoy a
sense of responsibility and observe a straightforward code of
conduct as occupying forces subject to international law.

"There is no doubt that this episode clearly proves one thing;
namely, that the nature of occupation is the same everywhere in
terms of its conduct, method, and style of injustice and
oppression of the people under occupation, regardless of whether
this occupation is under the umbrella of the absent
international law, outside this framework, or somewhere in
between. The misleading and ridiculous talk about the mission
of the US and British occupation troops in spreading the values
of freedom and democracy in Iraq has been exposed as a lie by
the photos of the British troops and dozen of other photos by
their US counterparts. The moral and humanitarian claims of the
neocolonialists no longer fool anybody."

--------------

"Storming Scandal"

--------------

Ali Qasim, an editorialist in government-owned Al-Thawra, wrote
(2/15): "The British soldiers who were engaged in disgusting
sadism against Iraqi teenagers will most likely receive light
punishments while their commanders remain immune, as happened in
similar previous cases....

"Perhaps statements by the British PM Blair bring to mind
statements made by American officials after the Abu Ghraib
scandal. The inquiry he promised to conduct will not be better
than the inquiry that the Americans conducted. The sentences
against those who were involved in the shameless acts will not
be harsher than those passed against some American soldiers, but
the hands and minds that were behind those practices will be
acquitted....

"The issue is not conduct by some individuals as much as it is a
systematic policy followed in all ages. The occupier remains the
same throughout history...."

Seche