(New York Times) Editorial - As Detlev Mehlis, the German prosecutor directing [the UN] probe, reported to the Security Council Tuesday, top Syrian and Lebanese officials were deeply involved in planning and organizing this spectacular crime as part of an effort to terrorize restive Lebanese politicians into carrying out orders from Damascus. Once the investigation is done, those formally charged should be tried and held accountable, perhaps before an international tribunal. Like pre-invasion Iraq, Syria has long been forcibly ruled by a secular faction based in a religious minority that has ruthlessly suppressed all opposition. In Syria's case, the ruling clique is Alawite and the repressed majority is Sunni. Should President Bashar al-Assad fall, the likeliest successors would be even more ruthless Alawite generals or the Sunni fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood.
2005-10-26 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive