U.S. Warns of U.N. Penalties After Lebanon Killing

[denverbill]

<snip>
But in a thinly veiled warning to Damascus, McClellan said: "The United States will consult with other governments in the region and on the Security Council today about measures that can be taken to punish those responsible for this terrorist attack, to end the use of violence and intimidation against the Lebanese people and to restore Lebanon's independence, sovereignty and democracy by freeing it from foreign occupation."

It was not immediately clear what punitive measures the United States would propose at the United Nations (news - web sites).

"We do not know who was responsible for the attack at this point. It's premature to know that," McClellan said.

"We continue to be concerned about the foreign occupation in Lebanon. We've expressed those concerns," he added.

<snip>

Ummm. I'm quite sure Syria's occupation of Lebanon is way different from our occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. I'm just not quite sure how they differ.

[Redstone]

1. OK, I get it. We "don't know who's responsible," but

we'll just go a head and threaten Syria, right out of the chute anyway.

I guess it's a reflex, like your leg jumping when the doctor whaps you below your kneecap with that little hammer.

Redstone

[Zynx]

2. Eh, Syria actually is probably guilty of this.

They were the main ones this guy had a beef with.

[allemand]

4. Not necessarily true.

There are some indications that Islamists did it.

"Lebanon security storm Hariri bomb claimer's home

BEIRUT, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Lebanese security forces on Monday stormed the Beirut home of a man they identified as a Palestinian who appeared in a video claiming responsibility for the killing of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik al-Hariri.

A Lebanese security forces statement said Ahmed Tayseer Abu Adas was not in the house. He had earlier appeared in a video aired by Al Jazeera claiming responsibility killing Hariri and calling him a Saudi agent.

Authorities were investigating whether he had blown himself up in the car bombing that killed Hariri or whether he was an accomplice in plotting the attack, the statement said.

"Computer equipment and tapes were seized from his house and some documents were confiscated for investigation," it said. Early investigations had shown he was a member of an Islamic school of thought known as Wahhabism -- an austere form of Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia."

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L14681185.htm

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=1236249&mesg_id=1237344&page=

[IndianaGreen]

9. Looks like an Al-Qaeda job

Let's wait and see what the evidence is.

[Redstone]

5. I didn't say the Syrian gov't is a group of nice people

because they're not.

Just commenting on bushyboy and his pals' itchy trigger fingers.

Redstone

[AFSCME girl]

3. How convenient for Bu$hCo....

he can use this to bomb Syria into freedom and democracy. Hey, why not simultaneously "bring freedom and democracy" to Iran AND Syria...../end sarcasm. The sad part is, this is only February of 2005, we have another three God-awful years of this Bu$hCo crap!
:grr:

[sr_pacifica]

6. Covert U.S. action

Is my take on this. The beginnings of a case to take military action on Syria. The group who claimed responsibility was described as "little-known." Actually, I think it is more like "never-heard-of" which should lead to suspicion as to the true culprits.

[ECH1969]

7. This guy was best friends with the Saudis and Bush

He was a one of the few big US allies in the country so I doubt we did it.

[IndianaGreen]

8. The highly detailed US response to this terrorist attack makes me wonder

about the US role in the assassination of Rafik Hariri. The White House response looks like it has been on the shelf for some time, like our war plans against Iraq and Iran.

Lebanese Information Minister Elie Ferzli told CNN that a suspect with links to extremists is in custody.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/14/beirut.explosion/index.html

Despite the claim about an arrest, there are only two parties that benefit from the assassination: Al-Qaeda and Israel. Both of them hate Syria, but for different reasons. Israel would like to see Syria out of Lebanon. Al-Qaeda would like to see the Syrian Baathists out of power, replaced by an Islamist government.

Time will tell...

[hector459]

10. My bet is it's a black-bag joint operation CIA-Mossad.

It makes absolutely no sense for Syria to be behind this assassination at this time.

[IndianaGreen]

11. Particularly when they are the ones to get the blame for it

It is either Al-Qaeda, trying to restart the civil war, or like you said, a CIA/Mossad blag bag operation.

[hector459]

14. Apparently others think the US/Israel was involved.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8060.htm

Asks the question, "Who would gain from such and act?"

[Igel]

21. The old "cui bono" ('for whose good") question is so

tricky to apply.

It assumes that we can know everybody possible perpetrator and their agenda and what they think is desirable. Making up a remotely plausible story's the easy part.

[htuttle]

15. It would serve both their interests

Al Queda, insofar as it destabilizes Lebanon, and the PNAC-axis, insofar as it helps provide a future casus belli to invade Syria.

I don't think it serves Syria's interests. I was under the impression that their influence in Lebanon had moved more toward a political one than an expensive military one. Though I know that some Syrian military remain in Lebanon, there are not as many as would be needed to preserve their influence in case of a Lebanese civil war.

[allemand]

12. "Informed Comment"

by Juan Cole:

A shadowy and previously unknown group called "Aid and Jihad in the Lands of Syria" claimed responsibility in a videotape that I saw on al-Jazeerah. The spokesman reading the message was dressed as a Muslim fundamentalist big posters were behind him with Muslim fundamentalist slogans.

If this group really was behind the assassination, it appears to be because of Hariri's Saudi Arabian context. Hariri had lived many years in Saudi Arabia, and was a big contractor in private business. He retained both the Saudi citizenship and the contracting business while prime minister in the 1990s and again 2000-2003. This assassination may be a spill-over into the Levant of the recent al-Qaeda-linked terrorism in Saudi Arabia

On the other hand, al-Hariri resigned as prime minister last fall in a bitter dispute with President Emile Lahoud. Both had been clients of Syria, but Syria wanted to keep Lahoud on for an extra three years beyond what was allowed by the Lebanese constitution, and al-Hariri, like many Lebanese, strongly objected to tinkering with the constitution by an outside power. Personally, I find the likelihood of the Saudi connection generating al-Qaeda-type violence against him somewhat more plausible than that it came out of local politics, since local politics had been fairly civil in Lebanon.

It is also possible, since al-Hariri was worth $4 billion and had all sorts of shady deals going on even when he was PM, that this assassination had an economic/ mafia-type background that we are not aware of.

http://www.juancole.com/2005/02/hariri-killed-in-huge-car-bombing-in.html

He translates the name of the group as "Aid and Jihad", not "Victory and Jihad". Is aid/victory in Arabic the same word as world/peace is in Russian?

[frictionlessO]

13. I wonder if this particular PNAC'er neoCON had a hand??? READ

Read it pretty please
(Thanks to Sparosnare for posting this possibly highly relevant info in the PNAC and Neocon Agenda group)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=307x32

trust me its worth the read!

[yinkaafrica]

16. Hello mossad

bastards

[Name removed]

18. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[leesa]

20. It's usually a good place to look first.. He's talking about ISRAEL, not

Jews...stop playing a bigotry card that doesn't exist.

[mmonk]

17. We have credibility with the UN?

Just another bunch of talk directed at dumb Americans, not really the rest of the world.

[leesa]

19. Screw off US. Now they hide again behind UN skirts!