Posted on 10/29/2005 5:42:33 PM PDT by blam
Syria accuses US of launching lethal raids over its borders
By Harry de Quetteville in Baghouz
(Filed: 29/10/2005)
Syria has accused the United States of launching lethal military raids into its territory from Iraq, escalating the diplomatic crisis between the two countries as the Bush administration seeks to step up pressure on President Bashar Assad's regime.
Concern: A Syrian soldier looks across at Iraqi border
Major General Amid Suleiman, a Syrian officer, said that American cross-border attacks into Syria had killed at least two border guards, wounded several more and prompted an official complaint to the American embassy in Damascus.
He made the allegations during an official press tour of Syrian security forces on the Iraqi border, which the US claims is a barely guarded passage into Iraq for hardcore foreign jihadis.
While showing off what he said were beefed-up Syrian border measures designed to blunt those criticisms, including new police stations and checkpoints, Maj Gen Suleiman alleged that his own border forces had come under repeated American attack.
"Incidents have taken place with casualties on my surveillance troops," he said, near the Euphrates river border crossing between Syria and Iraq. "Many US projectiles have landed here. In this area alone, two soldiers and two civilians have been killed by the American attacks."
The charge follows leaks in Washington that the US has already engaged in military raids into Syria and is contemplating launching special forces operations on Syrian soil to eliminate insurgent networks before they reach Iraq.
"No one in the administration has any problem with acting tough on Syria; it is the one thing they all agree on," said Edward Walker, a former US ambassador to Egypt and Israel, who is now head of the Middle East Institute think-tank. "I've heard there have been some cross-border activities, and it certainly makes sense as a warning to Syria that if they don't take care of the problem the US will step up itself."
But he warned that the increased blurring of battle lines between Iraq and Syria could turn a diplomatic stand-off between the two nations, playing out at the UN, into a fully fledged military confrontation. "It could escalate. With Syrian border guards getting shot, it could turn into a major issue."
In the Euphrates valley, however, the alleged cross-border fire fights are already a major issue. The Syrian military said that in May, in the divided village of Baghouz, which straddles the Syria-Iraq border about 350 miles north east of Damascus, Abdullah al-Hassake was manning a rundown concrete frontier outpost when he and fellow soldiers heard US helicopters.
He went on to the police station roof to survey the impending battle between US troops and Iraqi insurgents, who flee to the border when under attack, and was killed by fire from the US helicopters.
Syrian officials said that US charges that they were not doing enough to prevent insurgents crossing into Iraq are unfair. They pointed to new barbed wire and reinforced sand barriers across the 400-mile border, which cost £1.5 million, and claimed that they had deported or arrested about 1,500 foreign fighters heading to Iraq.
Much of the border is impossible to seal. Across the divide, the continuing violence in Iraq is all too evident. Both sides have strong ties with the regime of the former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. "The people here are happy to help fighters go to face the Americans," said one local. But reinforced security on the Syrian side had made life harder, he added. That view is supported by some Western diplomats in Damascus, although US defence officials remain sceptical.
"The Syrians have stopped actively encouraging jihadis to go," said one diplomat. "In fact recently they've tried quite hard to stop it."
Across the Euphrates, the border appears to be the likely stage for a future showdown between the US and Syria.
"Sometimes the US soldiers fire at us every day," said Ibrahim Brahim, a Syrian security official. "Sometimes it's simply a mistake, but sometimes it's not. Mostly the US army wants to show us its power."
MORE MORE MORE!
We have absolutely no control over our own borders. What makes us think we can hold Syria accountable for who crosses theirs?
Wouldn't that be great! The NYT would choke writing the "Bush Was Right!" headline.
Lethal U.S. raids. I wouldn't expect any other kind. Keep up the 'skeer'!
Non-official incursions into Syria are just as unofficial as non-official support for terrorists entering Iraq.
If Syria keeps it up, the incursions will become the officially-sanctioned kind.
The problem is that you would have to go deep into Syria to find them and they have had a log time to dispose of anything incriminating if they chose to.
It would be difficult to justify in the present political climate a full scale invasion of Syria. The only way would be if Syria was dumb enough to attack us in Iraq directly and I don't see them as that stupid.
I did not know anyone else remembered those trucks (full of WMD's) My husband works at STRATCOM & at a dinner party just after the start of the war &I heard some officers talking about what was going on ..... sat pictures of trucks running across the border...but we could not PROVE what was in them, although I think an 8 year old could figure it out. The media would question our military & take the side of the enemy. "I'm sure they were scare of the coming invasion/occupation. There were only homeless children in those trucks."
Quite fair statement. All we and the Iraqi IG can do is continue to ask them to do their best. If it comes down to better relations between the Iraqi, Syrian, US units to work as a coordinated team, so be it. The Syrian general in this article about 2 months back had complained that they asked us (US) if we could supply them with night vision headgear, and quite franky we told them no. But it is a two way street. A lot of the Syrian officers have not been willing to do their jobs.
But where as we all understand, Syria can really show it is willing to cooperate is to show us where they are totally removing the known in country terrorist camps such as those often mentioned outside Alleppo in NW Syria. And they could do a lot better in screening incoming ME young ones that fly into their airports. It really is a mess. For so long they have sponsored terrorists and now are being asked to become nice guys.
MSM did not want to explore the idea because it would help the case for war and help Bush. They glossed over it truck traffic and no more.
I wouldn't put much faith in Syria's anti terrorist efforts as long as they have enlistment offices for Hezbollah and HAmas right next to the Starbucks on main and main in Damascus. I'm not entirely convinced that Assad doesn't have some of those wmd's we've been looking high and low for stashed away in his new bunkers.
Yea. Know what you mean. As I write I often think of what I omit. The joke is how does one seperate out a terrorist camp that only would train and house goons that would enter Iraq, verse ones that belong to Hezbollah. It is sort of an oxymoron I guess. We are asking Syria to denounce all terrorism. His pledge in 2000 to rid his country of all forms of terrorism was most likely just a play on words to hope his new position would be acceptable to the west. If he was actually sincere at the time, he quickly found out he was not in control of his father's henchmen. Speaking of Starbucks they have no problem putting their stores in such a terrorist country and at the same time refused to honor our troops when asked if they would consider sending bags of Starbuck beans to our men and women in Iraq. Their answer of course was no. They would not consider such support. Pricks!
If it goes to the UN you have the spectre of UN troops from France and Russia being called in to assist the Syrians in keeping Americans out.
I was waiting for that one...
And, what is so wrong about it? If anything, such hot pursuit action was long time in waiting.....I hope these accusations are true! :-)
Typical Arab insult tactic..
Insist you wish to be the enemy's freind, then demand the enemy give you something so you can "help" them and then use it to undermine the enemy's efforts..
If the Syrians want night vision equipment, they can readily buy it from the russians.. or buy russian NV equipment through middlemen..
It is readily available, and relatively cheap..
I have russian NV and optics myself..
This "complaint" about the US not cooperating to stop the terrorists crossing the border is all BS..
No matter what or how much equipment we supplied the Syrians, none of it would be used to assist in border security operations..
In fact, it would result in just the opposite..
Tariq Aziz knows all,even about the trucks.And who owns him?
Ought to launch B52 carpet bombings on Damascus and Assads homes.
Kill his babies and he'll take note. As did Kadaffy.
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