Referring to press reports that Iraq covertly transferred weapons of mass destruction to Syria in an attempt to hide them from U.N. inspectors, Bolton said the United States sees the reports "as cause for concern," but has thus far been unable to confirm them. "We are continuing ... to seek conclusive evidence," he said, and have raised the issue with the Syrians "on numerous occasions."

Bolton said the United States is concerned about Syria's nuclear research and development program and continues to watch for any signs of nuclear weapons activity. He noted that Syria has not yet signed the International Atomic Energy Agency's Additional Protocol, which strengthens the IAEA's investigative powers to verify compliance with nuclear safeguards, adding: "We believe the Additional Protocol should be a new minimal standard for countries to demonstrate their nonproliferation bona fides."

He said Syria has "one of the most advanced Arab state chemical weapons capabilities" and is continuing to develop an offensive biological weapons capability. In addition, Syria has "a combined total of several hundred Scud and SS-21 SRBMs [short-range ballistic missiles], and is believed to have chemical warheads available for a portion of its Scud missile force."

Originally posted by Saphronia
Let's deal in fact instead of accusations and assumptions.

Human Rights abuses: Assad has slowly opened up his country and even allowed pro-democracy rallies to take place. He's opened internet cafe's and allowed the first independant press in Syria. He alsor released hundreds of political prisoners. But, this is a process and nothing is going to happen overnight. No, he's not Mr. Perfect and his father's rule is still haunting. How does this mean he's planning to bomb the US and needs to be overthrown?

The disparate ruling groups in Syria, Turkey, and Iran all feel threatened by stirrings of Kurdish assertiveness in Iraq. The killing of more than 30 Kurds in confrontations with Syrian police over the past week -- the outcome of swiftly repressed Kurdish protests in Syrian towns and cities -- does not compare in scale with the killing and ethnic cleansing of Kurds in Saddam Hussein's Iraq or in neighboring Turkey. Nevertheless, the underlying pathology behind those crimes against humanity was also on display in the behavior of Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime.

The violent measures taken against Kurds in Damascus and Aleppo who dared to protest earlier killings of Kurds in predominantly Kurdish towns along Syria's northern border with Turkey reflect the Assad regime's intolerance of free speech and political pluralism. But something else is also revealed in the response of the Syrian Ba'athists.

Like their counterparts in Turkey and Iran, Syria's rulers appear panicked by the precedent of 4 million Iraqi Kurds being guaranteed a high degree of cultural and political autonomy in an interim Iraqi constitution. The very idea that this constitution would enshrine the Kurdish language along with Arabic as one of two official tongues for the new Iraq represents an intolerable threat to the Ba'athists of Syria. They use an Arab nationalist ideology to justify their unbending denial of any separate Kurdish identity.

Ramzi Irani's decomposing body was found in the boot of his own car in a run-down area of hotels and bars in the west of the Beirut on May 20, 2002.

Irani was kidnapped in broad daylight in the canter of Beirut 16:30 local time Tuesday the 7th of May 2002. Irani was a 36-year-old engineer but he was also the Lebanese University representative of the Student Committee of the L F.

Well what a suprise, another dilluted argument that has been directly discredited by current events.

The unrest began in the mainly Kurdish town of Qamishli where fans of an Arab team taunted fans of a largely Kurdish team by waving pictures of Saddam Hussein.

Originally posted by Saphronia
How can the US invade Syria for an occupation we sanctioned? Answer that.

And, how can you accuse me of making a "dilluted argument" about the occupation of Lebanon when you offer no background on why Syria is even in Lebanon? Lebanon was a wreck, and we, meaning the US, along with the Arab league allowed Syria to go in and bring about peace. Surely, Lebanon deserves their freedom and sovereignty, but at what cost? No one, not even the Lebanonese government supports a complete turn over by Syria at this time.

Look I'll help you. The biggest problem with the Syrian occupation is the so called "terrorist group" Hezballah. Syria's support for them is the only reason this occupation is coming under attack right now. Again I will not address any issues that attempt to link US sercurity concerns with Israel's sercurity concerns.

Hezbollah and its affiliates have planned or been linked to a lengthy series of terrorist attacks against America, Israel, and other Western targets. These attacks include:

a series of kidnappings of Westerners, including several Americans, in the 1980s;
the suicide truck bombings that killed more than 200 U.S. Marines at their barracks in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1983;
the 1985 hijacking of TWA flight 847, which featured the famous footage of the plane's pilot leaning out of the cockpit with a gun to his head;
and two major 1990s attacks on Jewish targets in Argentina—the 1992 bombing of the Israeli embassy (killing 29) and the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center (killing 95).

How can the US invade Syria for an occupation we sanctioned? Answer that.

As Lebanese Front fortunes declined, two outcomes seemed likely: the establishment in Mount Lebanon of an independent Christian state, viewed as a "second Israel" by some; or, if the Lebanese National Movement won the war, the creation of a radical, hostile state on Syria's western border. Neither of these possibilities was viewed as acceptable to Assad. To prevent either scenario, at the end of May 1976 Syria intervened militarily against the Lebanese National Movement, hoping to end the fighting swiftly. This decision, however, proved ill conceived, as Syrian forces met heavy resistance and suffered many casualties. Moreover, by entering the conflict on the Christian side Syria provoked outrage from much of the Arab world.

Despite, or perhaps as a result of, these military and diplomatic failures, in late July Syria decided to quell the resistance. A drive was launched against Lebanese National Movement strongholds that was far more successful than earlier battles; within two weeks the opposition was almost subdued. Rather than crush the resistance altogether, at this time Syria chose to participate in an Arab peace conference held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on October 16, 1976.

Syria's presence in Lebanon was legitimated by the establishment of the Arab Deterrent Force (ADF) by the Arab League in October 1976. In January 1977 the ADF consisted of 30,000 men, of whom 27,000 were Syrian. The remainder were token contingents from Saudi Arabia, the small Persian Gulf states, and Sudan; Libya had withdrawn its small force in late 1976.