Ain-Al-Yaqeen - January 13, 2006

		January 13, 2006

AT THE SAUDI-SYRIAN SUMMIT IN JEDDAH THE CUSTODIAN OF THE TWO HOLY MOSQUES UNDERSCORES THE IMPORTANCE OF ENHANCING SYRIAN LEBANESE RELATIONS AND TIGHTENING THEM IN THE MUTUAL BENEFIT OF THE TWO COUNTRIES AND THE SECURITY OF THE REGION.
AN EGYPTIAN-SYRIAN SUMMIT FOCUSES ON THE LEBANESE-SYRIAN RELATIONS.
THE SAUDI-SYRIAN COMMUNIQUÉ STRESSES THE NECESSITY OF THE ISRAELI WITHDRAWAL FROM ALL PALESTINIAN OCCUPIED TERRITORIES.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz and Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad held a meeting at the king's palace in Jeddah.

On the Saudi side, the meeting was attended by Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General; Prince Mit'eb Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs; Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Interior; Prince Saud Al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister; Prince Abdul-Ilah Ibn Abdul Aziz; Prince Miqren Ibn Abdul Aziz, Chief of General Intelligence; Prince Bandar bin Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Secretary General of the National Security Council; Prince Abdulaziz bin Fahd Ibn Abdul Aziz, Minister of State, Member of the Council and Chief of the Court of the Cabinet's Presidency; and Saudi Ambassador to Syria Ahmed Al Qahtani.

On the Syrian side, the meeting was attended by Farooq Al Shara, Foreign Minister, and Syrian Ambassador to the Kingdom Dr. Ahmed Nizamuddin.

After the meeting, the following press release was issued:

"At the invitation of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz, the President of Syria Bashar Al-Assad paid a state visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on January 8, 2006 during which they thoroughly discussed the latest developments in the region and the current Arab situation in addition to bilateral relations between the two countries.

The two leaders reviewed the situation in the Arab and occupied Palestine and confirmed their call for Israeli withdrawal from all Arab territories and occupied Palestine to enable the Palestinian people to establish their independent state with Al Quds as its capital and underscored the importance of Israeli complete pull out of the Syrian Golan occupied territory to the June 1967 parallel and from Lebanon's Shaba'a farms according to the Arab peace initiative which has been approved by the Arab summit in Beirut in 2002.

The two sides expressed keenness of the integrity of Iraq and restoration of its security and stability and welcomed the contents of the final communiqué issued by the Iraqi National Reconciliation conference held at the headquarters of the Arab League (in Cairo) in November 2005.

As regards the Syrian Lebanese relations, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz underscored the importance of enhancing Syrian Lebanese relations and tightening them in all fields in the mutual benefit of the two countries and the security of the region.

At the conclusion of the meeting, which took place in cordial and positive atmosphere, the two leaders agreed to activate the Saudi Syrian Joint Committee and intensify contacts between the two sides in whatever serves the Arab and Islamic issues.

On his part, President Al-Assad extended an invitation to King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz to visit Syria.

The monarch accepted the invitation".

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz held a lunch party in honor of visiting Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad and accompanying delegation who arrived in Jeddah.

The function was attended by Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General; Prince Mit'eb Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs; Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Interior; Prince Abdul-Ilah Ibn Abdul Aziz; Prince Miqren Ibn Abdul Aziz, Chief of General Intelligence; other prices, ministers and senior civil and military officials.

In Damascus Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad had received in Damascus Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal. The reception was attended by Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs Farouk Al-Shara and Saudi Ambassador to Syria Ahmad Al-Qahtani. Prince Saud Al-Faisal arrived in Damascus. He also had a meeting with Al-Shara, which focused on the latest regional and international developments.

Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad had arrived in Jeddah for a state visit to the Kingdom.

He was received at King Abdul Aziz International airport by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz; Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General; Prince Mishaal Ibn Majed Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Jeddah Province; other princes; senior protocol officers; and Syrian Ambassador to the Kingdom Dr. Ahmed Nizamuddin.

Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad left Jeddah after a brief state visit to the Kingdom.

At King Abdul Aziz International airport, he was seen off by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz; Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General; Prince Mit'eb Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs; Prince Miqren Ibn Abdul Aziz, Chief of General Intelligence; Prince Bandar Ibn Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Secretary General of the National Security Council; Prince Mishaal Ibn Majed Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Jeddah Province; Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz, Advisor to the King; Prince Turki Ibn Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz; Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Fahd Ibn Abdul Aziz, Minister of State, Member of the Council and Chief of the Court of the Cabinet's Presidency; senior protocol officials; senior civil and military officials; and Saudi Ambassador to Syria Ahmed Al Qahtani.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz received a telephone call from President Mohammed Hosni Mubarak of Egypt.

During the conversation, they discussed developments of the regional and international situations, led by the situation in the Middle East. Also, they reviewed the fraternal ties binding the two countries.

On the other hand the Lebanese Council of Ministers Information Office denied what has been published in the Lebanese Al Diyar newspaper concerning the talks held in Jeddah regarding the situation of the government.

Premier Fouad Siniora met with Parliament majority leader MP Saad Hariri in Jeddah, and was expected to meet with Speaker Nabih Berri soon to discuss the Shiite ministers' return to Cabinet. Media outlets had reported that a six-point agreement had been reached in Saudi Arabia between Siniora, Hariri and Berri to facilitate the return of the Shiite ministers.

The points include an acknowledgement that Hizbullah is a legitimate resistance group and not a militia, an agreement to downplay UN Resolution 1559, adopting consensus in Cabinet rather than a majority vote, referring to Shiite representatives in Cabinet before the appointment of any Shiite in any top public posts, postponing the discussion over Palestinian weapons currently, and considering the call for an international tribunal effective.

However, a spokesman in Siniora's office said that no agreement had been reached. "No decision will be taken before the premier returns from Saudi Arabia. All we can say at this stage is that there is positive development on the level of dialogue, but this dialogue will keep rolling until Siniora and Berri are back," the spokesman said.

The progress in negotiations between the coalition of Shiite ministers, and members of the Cabinet majority headed by Siniora, came following the meeting between Future Movement leader Saad Hariri and Speaker Nabih Berri in Jeddah.

A statement issued by the office of Hariri - who heads the parliamentary majority, and subsequently the majority in Cabinet - described the meeting as "very positive," saying Hariri stressed the "importance of continuing consultations with all parties in the government to overcome obstacles."

The statement added that Hariri told Berri he supported the speaker's initiative to hold roundtable discussions with various political groups to decide on major issues that could shape Lebanon's future.

The Cabinet crisis emerged last month when the five Shiite ministers suspended their participation, demanding major decisions be reached through a consensus, not majority voting. The Shiite coalition then asked for a number of other demands.

But according to sources close to the ongoing dialogue, such demands were not granted to the Shiite bloc, despite the positive tone that governed the Hariri-Berri meeting. However an agreement to discuss these issues in Parliament, in a nation wide dialogue, was reached.

Future Movement MP Atef Majdalani also said the agreement between the Cabinet majority represented by Hariri and Siniora was in its final stages.

Majdalani said: "Drafting the final agreement is not over yet, words are being added and removed, but the main thing is that we agree on the broad lines."

Majdalani said there was an agreement to protect the resistance until the liberation of all Lebanese land. "But we also agreed on the need to demarcate the borders between us and Syria," he added. "Doing so will show the international community that Shebaa Farms is Lebanese, and thus grant the resistance the legitimacy it needs from the UN."

As progress was being made in ending Lebanon's Cabinet crisis, MP Walid Jumblatt launched a fiery attack against Hizbullah, questioning the party's determination to maintain its arms indefinitely. Jumblatt indirectly addressed the resistance, saying: "To those who hold the rifle today we say, 'thank you, the South is free'; to whom is your allegiance now, Lebanon or other countries?"

"We don't want to be in the middle of an axis that starts in the Mediterranean and ends in Tehran," Jumblatt added, in reference to the Shiite party's relations with Syria and Iran.

Jumblatt demanded that Lebanon's Shiite ministers - who walked out of a Cabinet meeting in early December and subsequently suspended their participation in the government in protest against a decision to request an international investigation into the series of assassinations targeting the country over the past year-and-a-half - should explain their recent positions.

"We tell them you left the meeting maybe to escape, because the Syrian regime does not want an international tribunal," he said. "We knew when we asked for an international tribunal the ruler of Damascus will not accept it. If they want the truth, why are they dodging the call for an international tribunal?"

The Druze leader said "There are 'security islands' that harbor a load of wired cars ... and as we all know, the state cannot investigate or interrogate people in some of the areas inside these security islands," he said.

The Druze leader also said the Shebaa Farms are not Lebanese, and condemned the recent use of the term "Shebaa area" instead of Shebaa Farms by Hizbullah in a draft agreement with the Cabinet majority.

"We used to talk about the Farms, and then these farms expanded and turned into an area ... those who know the area know that the Shebaa area is a region that starts in Shebaa and ends in (the Syrian) Golan Heights, which means that there is an attempt to stretch the struggle forever under the slogan of freeing Shebaa Farms, which is not Lebanese, not Lebanese, not Lebanese," Jumblatt asserted.

The Shebaa Farms is a strip of land between Lebanon, Syria and Israel. Israel and the United Nations say the territory belongs to Syria, while Lebanon claims it is Lebanese with verbal support from Syria, but no official documentation.

"Shebaa Farms is not Lebanese and the Syrian regime is not going to give us a property deed to the area," Jumblatt said. "Telling us we cannot demarcate the borders in light of the current tensions is something stupid." He added: "South Lebanon is liberated, UN Resolution 425 is implemented, and we should stop dodging this fact."

Meantime on 31 January, the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) will expire. The Council is expected to receive the report of the Secretary-General around 20 January, discuss the recommendations in consultations and extend the mandate of UNIFIL by six months.

Because of sensitivities about the Security Council involvement in the substance of Middle East issues relating to Israel and its neighbours, Council members participating in the Quartet (a group leading the diplomatic effort on the Middle East and the Palestinian question and composed of the Secretary-General, the European Union, Russia and the US) are unlikely to want to link the implementation of resolution 1559 to the question of the UNIFIL mandate. Rather, it is more likely that they will prefer that renewal be seen as an essentially technical exercise.

Similarly, it seems unlikely that the Council will take up the substance of the cross border issues being raised by Lebanon and Israel. It would not be welcomed by the Quartet, on the grounds that it is not possible to see what concrete or practical measures the Council could take that would assist the situation.

It is likely therefore that a consensus will readily be found among Council members on the simple renewal of UNIFIL's mandate.

On another scale British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said uncovering the truth behind the assassination of former Premier Rafiq Hariri and other murders is "important and essential for Lebanon's future."

Straw was speaking following a meeting with his Lebanese counterpart Fawzi Salloukh, during the second day of his visit to Lebanon.

"On top of the topics we have discussed were [UN Security Council] resolutions 1559 and 1595 and what followed them and I told the minister that it is important and essential for Lebanon's future to uncover the truth behind all the assassinations."

He rejected allegations his visit to Lebanon is interference in the country's internal affairs.

"We as a member of the international community and a member of the Security Council are responsible to provide the region with peace and security and our commitment toward Lebanon is to help it become a free and sovereign state. That is not interference," Straw told reporters.

He emphasized the international community is looking forward to seeing all UN resolutions fully implemented and Lebanon "a prosperous, independent and sovereign country within the international community."

"And we [the international community] are of course ready to enhance our cooperation and support to resolve problems or difficulties between the Lebanese people and the Israeli people."

His comments came as news from Israel indicated Premier Ariel Sharon was in critical health after suffering from a stroke.

Straw said he was praying for Sharon to regain his health, but refrained from commenting on the consequences of the premier's possible death.

"Sharon is a towering figure not only in Israel but in the whole region. He is very ill and remains the prime minister. We hope and pray that he recovers. We hope and pray for that miracle."

Straw further added that Sharon had won "huge respect across the world" as prime minister particularly after his unilateral decision to pull out his troops from Gaza strip during the past summer.

"Israel is a resilient and strong democracy. My view is that whoever is running Israel will be able to take his policy forward," Straw added.

For his part, Salloukh said that the Arab region is interested in seeing an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict.

"We in Lebanon are interested in freeing territories that are still under Israeli occupation, and that in compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 425. We are also interested in preserving Lebanon's independence and sovereignty."

Salloukh said that he was not certain whether Sharon's death would have positive consequences on the region, but added "we hope that Sharon's successor will be more understanding and more appreciative of the 2002 Arab peace initiative.

Salloukh added that once the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is resolved, all the regions' problems will be resolved.

"We hope that the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza will be followed by other similar moves that will lead to the creation of the Palestinian state and its capital Jerusalem," said Salloukh.

Straw then had a series of meetings with Lebanon's religious leaders including Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir and Grand Mufti Sheikh Mohammad Rashid Qabbani.

His talks with the religious figures focused on the political situation in the country following the extension of President Emile Lahoud's presidential term and the assassination of Rafiq Hariri, as well as on the Arab-Israeli conflict and Lebanese prisoners in the Israeli and Syrian jails. It also focused on the latest developments in the region.

Straw was not scheduled to meet with pro-Syrian president Lahoud.

He also met with father of slain MP Gebran Tueni, Ghassan. Tueni was the last anti-Syrian official who was murdered last year.

In Cairo an Egyptian presidential source said that Al-Assad had a one-on-one meeting with Mubarak, later expanded to include members of both delegations, but declined to comment further.

Al-Assad said in remarks published that he would only agree to testify to the UN commission if the request had a legal basis. "Any request of this kind, based on legal basis, we are with it," he told the Egyptian weekly Al-Osboa, but stressed that he had "international immunity."

Arab diplomats said one face-saving proposal being put to Al-Assad called for him to send an envoy meet with the investigators to take their questions and return them to Damascus. Al-Assad would then provide written answers and send them back to investigators.

The daily Al-Hayat, quoting diplomatic sources, reported that Shara, who accompanied Al-Assad to Jeddah, had written to the UN probe agreeing to be interviewed but stating Al-Assad was still "studying" the request.

The letter stresses "the Syrian president's immunity" and that his questioning would "violate Syrian sovereignty," according to Al-Hayat.

The diplomats also said Al-Assad is seeking stronger Arab support for Syria - including convening an Arab summit to discuss Syria's strained relations with the West.

In the Al-Osboa interview, Al-Assad denied that he had threatened Hariri in a meeting to discuss extending the term of pro-Syrian Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, which the slain ex-premier opposed.

"I am direct and frank. I don't know what others meant by threatening. This never happened and the aim was to connect the threat with the assassination. The game is clear.

Nobody attended the last meeting between me and Hariri, therefore, how did they tell these allegations?"

Al-Assad accused Khaddam of being part to the anti-Syrian schemes and activities even when he was vice president but could not prove it. "I think he was involved in the planning long ago and he was a basic party to it, but until now, we don't have certain details," Al-Assad said.

Al-Assad could not say who was the prime beneficial from Hariri's killing, but he suggested Israel and unnamed Lebanese powers. "I don't have evidence or indications, the beneficiary could be Israel, whether directly or indirectly and there is another beneficiary, we have to say if there are certain Lebanese powers capable of carrying out this act ... but I think the patriotic Lebanese powers are not involved, therefore we have to look for other powers which have interest in the assassinations," he said.

On the other hand former Syrian vice president Abdul-Halim Khaddam, who left his post in the Syrian government in June, said in an interview with the Associated Press that former Lebanese Premier Rafiq Hariri was threatened by Syria months before he was assassinated. That claim made him the first former top member of the Syrian government to confirm allegations in a U.N. commission report that Assad threatened Hariri in an August 2004 meeting.

On the other hand President Hosni Mubarak announced that the Syrian file topped the agenda of his summit meeting with President Jacques Chirac.

"I discussed with President Chirac all the (regional) issues, on top of which was the Syria-Lebanon file," President Mubarak told the Middle East News Agency (MENA) after his talks with the French leader.

President Mubarak, had began an official two-day visit to France, has launched a diplomatic offensive to end a standoff between Syria and the UN and defuse the Damascus-Beirut crisis.

Following his meeting with Chirac, MENA quoted Mubarak as saying that their talks covered the regional situation, anti-terrorism cooperation, and Egyptian-French ties.

Presidents Mubarak and Chirac had "very constructive" talks on the Middle East situation with emphasis on Syria, Iraq and Palestinian territories, the presidential spokesman said.

On the Syrian issue, both leaders called on Syria to cooperate with the UN investigation into the assassination of ex-Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq al-Hariri.

The two leaders have agreed that the UN probe should work "to unveil the truth on the assassination", spokesman Suleiman Awwad said, adding that Mubarak and Chirac also underlined "the need to preserve the historic links between Lebanon and Syria".

Awwad said Mubarak's consultations with Chirac were part of his "regional and international action to save the situation in Syria and Lebanon".

He also said that the Mubarak-Chirac summit focused on the Palestinian scene now that the parliamentary elections in Israel and Palestine are approaching, Awwad said.

President Mubarak has highlighted the financial crisis facing the Palestinian Authority and has called on President Chirac to grant the Palestinians financial support through the European Union.

On Iraq, President Mubarak and President Chirac agreed that the recent Iraqi legislative elections would prepare the way to national reconciliation that would preserve the Iraq's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

President Mubarak held talks with King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz in Jeddah.

The two leaders urged Syria to cooperate with the UN inquiry into Hariri's murder to prevent "any harm" to Damascus.

Mubarak and King Abdullah agreed that the UN investigation should try "to unveil the truth on the assassination ... in accordance with international law".

They also agreed that "Damascus must cooperate with the international commission of inquiry in order to avoid any harm to Syria" .

In Cairo the Arab League Secretary General Amre Moussa stressed that the implementation of the security in Lebanon is a priority adding that the Arab League can not interfere in the UN investigation.

On the efforts of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz and the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and the Arab League to defuse the crisis, the AL Secretary General said the former Syrian Vice President has brought new important elements into the issue and King Abdullah and President Mubarak interfered to try to find a solution.

On the role of the Arab League Moussa stressed that the AL can not interfere in any way in the investigation that must be completed and Lebanon must enjoy living in security.

On interviewing President Bashar Al-Assad, Moussa said the investigation must take its course until the truth is unveiled and the investigation file is not negotiable.