VZCZCXYZ0000
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHDM #0400/01 1161251
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 261251Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3384
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN 6758
RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT 4490
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO 3111
RUEHRH/AMEMBASSY RIYADH 7636
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 1708
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 5044
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM 1251
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL//CCPA//
INFO RUEHNC/AMEMBASSY NICOSIA 7376

UNCLAS DAMASCUS 000400 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR PA, NEA/ARN, INR/IC/CD, INR/R/MR:STHIBEAULT AND 
JMCCARTER, VOA NEWS CA, NEA/PPD:CBOURGEOIS, AZAIBACK, AND 
AFERNANDEZ, IIP/G/NEA-SA MDAVIDSON 
WHITE HOUSE FOR NSC 
CENTCOM FOR CCPA 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: KMDR PREL KPAO OPRC SY
SUBJECT: Ki-Moon Visit, Occupied Golan, Syria/Russia, Iraq, Lebanon, 
Palestinian Territories (5/26) 
 
¶1.  Summary:  Syrian papers on Apr. 26 reported a televised 
interview by al-Jazeera TV on Apr. 25 of Information Minister Dr. 
Mohsen Bilal, who described President Asad's meeting with UN 
Secretary General  Ban Ki-moon as positive and fruitful. "Syria 
 
SIPDIS 
considers 
Ki-Moon's visit to Damascus a positive and wise step," Bilal said. 
Regarding the Lebanese situation, Dr. Bilal said that President Asad 
has underlined that Lebanese civil peace and national agreement, and 
implementation of the Lebanese constitution, are the true and main 
bases to protect Lebanon.  Bilal pointed out that Ki-Moon touched 
upon the issue of the peace process in the region, showing support 
for the Arab peace initiative and expressing readiness to cooperate 
with Syria to achieve stability and a just and comprehensive peace 
in the region. 
 
Papers also reported that Syrian prisoners from the occupied Golan 
in Israeli jails called on the United Nations to work hard to help 
them, to stop criminal Israeli practices against them and to exert 
serious efforts for their release.  The Syrian people of occupied 
Golan stressed that the martyrdom of the Syrian prisoner Hail Abu 
Ziyed is clear and conclusive evidence of deliberate negligence by 
Israeli jails. 
 
On Syrian-Russian relations, papers reported that Syrian Prime 
Minister Otri reviewed on Apr. 25 with Russia's Regional Development 
Minister, Vladimir Yakovlev, cooperation and historical friendly 
relations between the two countries and means of boosting and 
expanding prospects for the achievement of their mutual interests in 
all different domains.  The sides discussed issues and topics that 
were reviewed by the Syrian-Russian joint committee for trade, 
scientific and technical cooperation. 
 
End of summary. 
 
¶2.  Selected Headlines: 
 
"A message from the Golan people to the UN Secretary General calling 
for releasing their prisoners in Israeli jails" (Government-owned 
Al-Thawra, 4/26) 
 
"Jeajea brags about assassinating Rashid Karami.  Lebanese 
opposition calls for scheduling the crime on the schedule of the 
investigation committee on the al-Hariri assassination" 
(Government-owned Al-Thawra, 4/26) 
 
"The Olmert government unleashes its premeditated aggression against 
Gaza" (Government-owned Tishreen, 4/26) 
 
"Israeli occupation threatens to attack Hanieh's residence.  Olmert 
gives his orders to the Israeli army for a harsh response in Gaza in 
retaliation for firing rockets at Israel"  (Government-owned 
Al-Ba'th, 4/26) 
 
"Extensive Iraqi rejection of the Al-A'zamiyah wall" 
(Government-owned Tishreen, 4/26) 
 
"Congress summons Rice to testify on justifications of war on Iraq" 
(Government-owned Al-Thawra, 4/26) 
 
"Democrats call for bringing Cheney to trial as a prelude to his 
ouster" (Government-owned Al-Thawra, 4/26) 
 
"The European Parliament calls for deposing Wolfowitz" 
(Government-owned Al-Ba'th, 4/26) 
 
¶3.  Editorial Block Quotes: 
 
----------------------- 
 
"Who Is the Aggressor?" 
 
----------------------- 
 
Umar Jaftali, an editorialist in government-owned Tishrin, wrote 
(4/26):  "Israel was the party that violated the truce with 
Palestinians through its attacks, arrests, assassinations, and 
 
incursions into West Bank cities.... 
 
"The occupation remains the source of the problem.... It is the 
right of those who suffer from injustice to defend themselves.  In 
this case, it is the Palestinian people who are suffering injustice 
in their land and country.  Their rights are being trampled upon 
every day before the eyes and ears of the world, which should pay 
attention to the true situation in the occupied Arab territories and 
tell the Israeli aggressor:  enough is enough...." 
 
------------------------------ 
 
"Boycott Is a Sheathed Weapon" 
 
------------------------------ 
 
Hanan Hamad, a commentator in government-owned Tishrin, wrote 
(4/26):  "During the current meetings in Damascus by the liaison 
officers of the Arab bureaus on the boycott of Israel, these bureaus 
failed to implement the recommendations of their recent conferences 
and lost their ability to resist the pressure that the West has 
applied to end the boycott, on the pretext of settling the 
Arab-Israeli conflict.... Currently there is talk about the 
possibility of forming an expanded Arab team to hold talks with 
Israel to promote the Arab peace plan.  That would be an attempt to 
place the cart before the horse.... 
 
"What is more painful is the sheathing of the boycott weapon while 
the Palestinian people are still suffering from the unjust siege, 
not only the international siege, but also the siege that prevents 
the arrival of funds that the sons of the Arab nation collected to 
support their brothers in Palestine...." 
 
----------------------------------------- 
 
"Where Are Things Heading in Lebanon?" 
 
----------------------------------------- 
 
Salim Abbud, a commentator in government-owned Al-Thawra, wrote 
(4/26)): "The situation in Lebanon grows tenser and graver by the 
day, and the growing interferences by the US Administration and some 
European forces, headed by France, threaten to push Lebanon into a 
dark tunnel... 
 
"The 14 February forces in Lebanon are unleashing their hatred 
toward Syria and the Lebanese resistance to serve the 
American-Israeli plan in the region.... 
 
"The government team in Lebanon wants the international court on the 
al-Hariri assassination to be established under Chapter Seven of the 
UN Charter so as to punish the nationalists and pan-Arabists in 
Lebanon and the region and turn Lebanon into an arena for 
international influence in which Israel and the United States will 
be the main players...." 
 
------------------------------------------- 
 
"Policies of Segregation and Fragmentation" 
 
------------------------------------------- 
 
Mihriz al-Ali, a commentator in government-owned Al-Thawra, wrote 
(4/26):  "The American plan is to build concrete walls around 
Al-A'zamiyah and other Iraqi regions.... This US plan, that reminds 
us of the Israeli racial segregation policy, aims at fragmenting 
Baghdad and undermining national unity as a prelude to dividing Iraq 
and turning its regions into sectarian cantons to entrench hostility 
among the sons of one people.... This is part of the bigger American 
plan to divide and fragment the region.... 
 
"US war advocates are entangled between failure and illusive 
victory.  They are deceiving themselves if they think that walling 
off Baghdad serves them or the Iraqis and that their 
widely-denounced policy is victorious.  Concrete walls cannot save 
Americans from further fatal involvement and will not bring security 
 
and stability...." 
 
Corbin