在线国产一区二区_成人黄色片在线观看_国产成人免费_日韩精品免费在线视频_亚洲精品美女久久_欧美一级免费在线观看

  Home>News Center>World
         
 

Syria might pull army from Lebanon in months
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-03-02 08:46

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said Syrian troops might pull out of Lebanon in the next few months, as Lebanese protesters rallied in central Beirut on Tuesday demanding Syria get out of their country.

Syria, which has 14,000 troops in Lebanon, has come under increasing pressure as a result of demonstrations following the assassination last month of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri.

"It (withdrawal) should be very soon and maybe in the next few months. Not after that," Assad said an interview conducted on Monday and published by Time magazine on its Web site on Tuesday.

"I could not say we could do it in two months because I have not had the meeting with the army people. They may say it will take six months," he added.

Two weeks of unprecedented protests forced the pro-Syrian government of Prime Minister Omar Karami to quit on Monday, leaving officials with a complex search for a new head of government.

Assad would not give a definite timetable for pulling out his army, saying it depended on technical rather than political considerations.

Syria has recently said it is willing to redeploy its troops to the Bekaa Valley near the border in line with the Taif agreement that ended Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war.

Damascus also faces growing international pressure. The United States has accused Damascus of assisting anti-U.S. insurgents in Iraq and backing anti-Israeli Palestinian militants as well as meddling in Lebanon.

Assad's remarks indicated for the first time that Syria was considering a quick total withdrawal from its neighbor -- as stipulated by a U.N. resolution and demanded by the United States and France.

The Taif Accord called for a redeployment of Syrian troops to eastern Lebanon, followed by agreement on a timetable for a full withdrawal.

"You need to prepare when you bring your army back to your country. You need to prepare where you will put the troops," Assad said.

He said security in Lebanon and the protection of Syria's own borders needed to be taken into consideration.

One influential U.S. senator said a withdrawal in "a few months" as suggested by Assad might not be acceptable to the international community.

"The world community is going to insist upon a rather rapid acceleration of that timetable," Richard Lugar, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told reporters after a meeting with US President Bush.

Karami said before his resignation that a hasty Syrian troop withdrawal could plunge Lebanon back into civil strife.

MARKET JITTERS

Market fears of a political vacuum put the Lebanese pound under intense pressure, forcing the central bank to dig into its foreign exchange reserves to defend the currency.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice welcomed what she called moves to restore democracy in Lebanon.

"Events in Lebanon are moving in a very important direction," she said in London. "The Lebanese people are starting to express their aspirations for democracy ... This is something that we support very much."

Rice and French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier repeated calls for Syria to withdraw its troops from Lebanon.

Washington and Paris, co-sponsors of Security Council resolution 1559 demanding an end to foreign interference in Lebanon, called for general elections planned for May to be free and fair and suggested international assistance.

A few hundred protesters returned to Beirut's central Martyrs' Square on Tuesday where thousands celebrated the resignation of Karami's government a day before.

They vowed to keep up their protests until Syrian troops leave the country.

"Our hopes are growing regarding Syria's exit after the resignation of the government," Patrick Risha, a 22-year-old political science student said.

Most opposition protesters are Maronite Christians, who have long opposed Syria's role in Lebanon, Druze and some Sunni Muslims. Shi'ite Muslims, Lebanon's largest community, have mainly stayed away from the anti-Syrian rallies.



 
  Today's Top News     Top World News
 

Beijing seeks best of the best for Olympics

 

   
 

Ease of incorporating opens doors

 

   
 

President Hu to address Fortune global forum

 

   
 

Foreign agencies to issue renminbi bonds

 

   
 

Access widened for Taiwan farm goods

 

   
 

Private economy demand pragmatic support

 

   
  Lebanese cabinet resigns
   
  French hostage in Iraq pleads for help
   
  Diplomats: Iran not yet capable of building nuke bomb
   
  War on terror lets poppies return to Pakistan
   
  How do politicians sleep at night? Answer: they don't
   
  Suicide bomb kills 125 near Iraq marketplace
   
 
  Go to Another Section  
 
 
  Story Tools  
   
  Related Stories  
   
Anti-terrorism campaign should start with Israel: Syrian paper
   
Anti-Syrian protesters take to streets
   
Lebanon govt. quits, pressure mounts on Syria
  News Talk  
  Are the Republicans exploiting the memory of 9/11?  
Advertisement
         
主站蜘蛛池模板: 日韩精品影视 | av网站在线看 | 日韩精品一区二区在线 | 91插插插插插 | 精品国产一区二区在线观看 | 国产精品久久久久久久久久久久久久久 | 国产激情综合五月久久 | 午夜成人在线视频 | 亚洲欧美综合网 | 午夜激情网 | 色哟哟入口国产精品 | 久久精品一区二区三区不卡牛牛 | 日韩精品视频在线播放 | 狠狠操av | 黄色片国产 | 中日韩毛片 | 色综合欧美 | 欧美日韩一区二区在线 | 国产高清视频 | 欧美激情亚洲 | 午夜看看 | 亚洲男人天堂av | 麻豆亚洲一区 | 国产精品免费一区二区三区 | av一二三区 | 毛片www| 性久久久久久 | 免费观看全黄做爰视频 | 国产a√ | 亚洲激情一区二区 | 国产中文字幕在线播放 | 国产精品一区二区三区在线 | 亚洲精选一区 | 欧美精品一级片 | 欧美在线视频观看 | 国产综合在线视频 | 黄色资源在线观看 | 亚洲天堂免费视频 | 国产精品久久免费 | 国产精品久久久久久久久借妻 | 天天综合天天做天天综合 |