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S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 DAMASCUS 000863 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/FO, NEA/ELA, L 
NSC FOR SHAPIRO/MCDERMOTT 
PARIS FOR NOBLES 
LONDON FOR LORD 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/15/2029 
TAGS: KJUS PREL UNCRIME LE SY
SUBJECT: SYRIA LOOKING FOR PRODUCTIVE HARIRI VISIT, 
REPORTEDLY PUTS HOSTILE LAWSUIT AGAINST LEBANESE ON BACK 
BURNER 
 
REF: BEIRUT 1318 
 
Classified By: CDA Charles Hunter for reasons 1.4 b and d. 
 
¶1.  (C) Summary: Jamil as-Sayyed's early December lawsuit in 
a Syrian court against some 23 Lebanese citizens and three 
Syrians provided a chilling reminder of Syria's potential 
response to any future indictments by the Special Tribunal 
for Lebanon (STL) against Syrian officials or their Lebanese 
allies.  But, for now, the Syrian government appears intent 
on putting the  charges aside in order to facilitate a 
positive visit by Lebanese PM Saad Hariri.  Bouthaina 
Shaaban, in response to a question from an al-Manar 
journalist during a December 4 press conference held on the 
same day as Michel Aoun's visit to Damascus, insisted there 
was no political content to the case, and that the matter was 
in the hands of Syria's "independent judiciary."  Arab 
diplomats tell us they have heard President Asad has decided 
that the lawsuit would not be conducive to a fruitful visit 
by Hariri and has ordered the case to be put on a back 
burner.  The investigative judge who admitted the case has 
yet to decide, however, whether the court has jurisdiction 
over the matter and may not do so for at least another week 
or two.  End Summary. 
 
¶2.  (C)  Most Syrians to whom we've spoken describe the case 
as "bizarre."  Contacts in the Syrian legal community tell us 
the investigative judge had the legal authority to admit the 
case because the lawsuit named Syrian as well as Lebanese 
defendants (such as former VP Khaddam, Souheir Saddiq, and 
Housam Housam).  As reported reftel, the investigative judge 
apparently issued a summons for some 23 Lebanese to appear 
for questioning, in part to help decide whether the court 
would have jurisdiction.  The judge first routed the summons 
through the Syrian MOJ directly to the Lebanese MOJ, citing a 
1951 legal cooperation agreement between the two countries. 
When the SARG received no response, it sent the file a second 
time through the Syrian MFA to the Syrian Embassy in Beirut, 
to the Lebanese MFA, and then to the Lebanese MOJ, where the 
request now sits while Lebanese officials determine how to 
proceed.  If the Lebanese Attorney General refuses to 
administer the "warrants," no one here is quite sure what 
would happen next. 
 
¶3.  (C)  Theories abound about Syrian motives.  The most 
straightforward explanation is the Syrians want to bolster 
as-Sayyed's claims of wrongful accusations to undercut the 
STL's credibility and deter any future STL indictments 
against Syrian officials or their Lebanese allies.  The 
Syrians, who attached the transcript of as-Sayyed's angry 
August 30 press conference to a September letter to the UNSYG 
denouncing the UNIIIC, may have coordinated with as-Sayyid to 
time the lawsuit with the December 2 arrival of STL 
Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare in Beirut. 
 
¶4.  (C)  After the Lebanese press began to report concerned 
Lebanese reactions to the case, Syrian officials sought to 
downplay its political significance.  Bouthaina Shaaban, 
answering what appeared to be a planted question from an 
al-Manar journalist during a December 4 press conference (the 
same day as Michel Aoun's visit to Damascus), insisted there 
was no political content to the case, and that the matter was 
in the hands of Syria's "independent judiciary." 
 
¶5.  (C)  A Lebanese Embassy contact notes the case caused 
problems in planning PM Hariri's visit to Syria.  Now, 
however, the Lebanese Embassy here assesses Asad has decided 
to put as-Sayyid's case on the back burner to pave the way 
for a positive Hariri visit.  According to the Lebanese 
 
DAMASCUS 00000863  002 OF 002 
 
 
Embassy, Bashar wants a more intimate setting without a lot 
of staff and is looking to limit the size of Hariri's 
visiting party to play up the optic of personal ties between 
the two leaders.  Asad, according to other Arab diplomats, 
very much wants Hariri to visit Syria prior to any trips to 
the U.S. or France.  Hariri's scheduled visit to Copenhagen 
appears to cause no heartburn here, but the Syrians 
reportedly are insistent that Damascus should be the next 
stop on Hariri's itinerary. 
 
¶6.  (C)  Though the Syrian investigative judge has still not 
decided whether he has jurisdiction and may not do so for at 
least another week or two, the mood remains positive after 
delegations representing Hariri and Sleiman delivered 
condolences and good wishes on December 14 to Asad, who is 
mourning the death of his brother Majd this week in the Asad 
family's home village of Qurdaja.  The Lebanese Embassy 
reports Asad may be using Saudi King Abdullah's son Abdel 
Aziz, who was also in Syria to deliver condolences, as a 
direct conduit to Hariri. Turkish FM Davutoglu, in town for 
the Turkish-Arab Forum, is also a likely player in trying 
broker the modalities for Hariri's visit.  The final details 
of Hariri's visit remain in flux, but the outlook for a 
constructive visit is "shaping up well," according to 
Lebanese DCM Rami Murtada.  The timing, participants, and 
other modalities, however, remain to be resolved. 
HUNTER