Damascus Media Reaction: Al-Hariri's Anniversary

UNCLAS DAMASCUS 000671

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's Anniversary
Speeches, Palestinian Territories (2/16)



1. Summary: Syrian newspapers sharply reacted to the speeches
that Walid Jumblatt, Sa'd al-Hariri, Samir Ja'ja, and other anti-
Syria Lebanese figures delivered in the demonstration staged in
Beirut to mark the first anniversary of former Lebanese Prime
Minister Rafiq al-Hariri's assassination. They said accusations
made by anti-Syrian Lebanese politicians were "decadent and
insulting," and accused these Lebanese figures of "vulgarity and
betrayal of Lebanon and the Arab nation."

Papers also reported that on Wednesday the regional leadership of
the Ba'th party in Lebanon condemned the campaign of provocation
and accusations made by some Lebanese statesmen in Beirut against
Syria and the Lebanese presidency. The leadership refused
criticism by those who attacked Syria and criticized their
speeches during the Al-Hariri anniversary. It also refuted
accusations against the Lebanese national resistance, which
liberated the land, pointing out that hurting the symbols of
resistance is a red line.

End summary.


2. Selected Headlines:

"Arab and Lebanese anger over the campaign of rancor and
allegations on the anniversary of the Al-Hariri assassination. It
encourages civil strife, deepens fragmentation and flatters
Israel. Ba'bda Palace: Lahoud has not succumbed to blackmail and
has not pulled back from challenges" (Government-owned Al-Ba'th,
2/16)

"The Kadima Party supports Jumblatt and pledges to protect him"
(Government-owned Tishreen, 2/16)

"Two Russian experts denounce the exploitation of the Al-Hariri
crime. General Lunev: Russians sympathize with Syria" (Government-
owned Tishreen, 2/16)

"Fatah sets its conditions. Mofaz threatens to server relations
with the Palestinian Authority. Israel: Hamas is a hostile
entity" (Government-owned Al-Ba'th, 2/16)


3. Editorial Block Quotes:

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

"They Are Re-assassinating Al-Hariri"

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

An unsigned editorial (2/16) says: "Trading on Al-Hariri's blood
never sank to the level it sank to in the February 14
demonstration in Beirut to mark the first anniversary [of his
death].... It was a party of invective and abuse. The ethical
degeneration and the festival of curses that was led by
politicians, who lost their temper and skillfully used pathetic
language, did not befit the occasion...or show respect for the
thought and legacy of the man who carried a pan-Arab message....

"Al-Hariri was always a big friend of Syria who defended the
national and pan-Arab issues of Syria and Lebanon.... Some
parties in Lebanon incite against Syria, the resistance, and the
Palestinians, while they glorify collaborators, isolationists,
and killers."

"There is flagrant interference by Western embassies and their
intelligence services in domestic Lebanese affairs.... Lebanese,
like Syrians and Arabs in general, are now more aware of the
magnitude of the conspiracy that targeted Al-Hariri, a
conspiracy that continues to wreak havoc in Lebanon and to
target Syria and its positions...."

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

"Sinking to the Bottom"

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


An unsigned editorial in government-owned Al-Thawra, reads
(2/16): "Some people find themselves in the weakness of their
accusations, the inferiority of their vocabulary, and the
vulgarity of their ethics....
"We saw Walid Jumblatt sinking in his stinking swamp to the
bottom and Sa'd al-Hariri begging as never before.... The scene
was eloquent, indeed expressive, and the words and movements
were sufficiently indicative. Some people were confused: Is this
a commemoration of Al-Hariri's martyrdom or is it a party to
seek charity and hurl invective....?

"Everyone in Lebanon heard Ja'ja' saying he wants the presidency
at any price, and repeated to those who did not hear: 'at any
price.' And no one in Lebanon failed to see the amount of
bankruptcy and failure in Walid Jumblatt's trivialities and
vulgarity...."

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

"A Rancorous Festival On Valentine Day"

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

A political editor commented in government-owned Tishreen, on
(2/16): "Yesterday the rancorous ones and the enemies of
Lebanon, Syria, and Arabism spread their venom against Syria,
the Lebanese presidency, and the Lebanese resistance....

"Speakers in the rancorous festival, who included a person
convicted in famous crimes [Samir Ja'ja'], a mentally ill person
[Walid Jumblatt], and a political novice [Sa'd al-Hariri],
impinged upon Syria, which stopped the Lebanese civil war and
offered thousands of martyrs in defense of Lebanon, its Arabism,
and its national unity....

"The cheap attack on Syria was the common denominator in the
speeches of the same team that linked itself to foreign
trusteeship and the anti-Lebanon and anti-Arab plans....

"During the festival alarm-stricken and vindictive faces were
taking turns in speeches that assassinated Al-Hariri once again
and tried to assassinate the Lebanese national resistance,
Lebanon's sovereignty and stability, and Syrian-Lebanese
relations, which have deep roots in history and geography, and
which are baptized by blood....

"Steadfast Syria receives the stabs of treachery with the
firmness and power of the big ones. It does not slide into the
holes of the dwarfs and conspirators. It trusts the Lebanese
people, who will not be misled by those who try to mislead them
no matter how skilful they are, and no matter what foreign
forces support them and what money is wasted to fund their
campaign against Lebanon, Syria, and Arabism...."

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

"A Political and Nervous Collapse"

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

Muhammad Khair al-Jammali, an editorialist in government-owned
Al-Thawra, wrote (2/16): "Speeches delivered by leaders of the
gang of hatred and plotting in Lebanon show that they began to
suffer a nervous breakdown after the failure of their conspiracy
against Lebanon and Syria....

"These Lebanese reached the point of open treason through their
impingement upon the symbols of national and pan-Arab
sovereignty and through their incitement against the weapons of
the resistance, which was, still is, and will continue to be
Lebanon's first line of defense against the Israeli danger...."

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

"When Rancorous Ones Howl"

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

Isam Dari, an editorialist in government-owned Tishreen,
commented (2/16): "We regret the low-level discourse by a group
that strayed from the right path and sought to mislead the
Lebanese public and international justice....

As for Syria, it rises above trivialities and pitiful people.
Syria takes pride in the Lebanese people and their great
sacrifices and valiant resistance. Syria is strong with its
history and the unity between the people and the political
leadership, whether the rancorous ones like it or not. Syria
represents the dignity and pride of the nation. The agents and
humiliated subservient followers should reconsider their
calculations and ask forgiveness from God, the Lebanese people,
and the blood of the martyrs. They should know that the nation
will not forgive their collaboration with the enemies of Lebanon
and Arabism and their exposed roles in creating sedition and
splits and fabricating disputes with the brothers to serve the
big powers and Zionism...."

Seche