US Accuses Syrians of Permitting Militant Iraq Infiltration

Sep 16, 2003
Administration Accuses Syrians of Permitting Militants to Infiltrate Iraq; Damascus Denies Charge
By Harry Dunphy - Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Syria still is allowing militants to cross the border into Iraq and kill U.S. soldiers, the Bush administration charged on Tuesday.

Undersecretary of State John Bolton also told a House hearing that Syria continues to support Hezbollah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad - groups the United States considers terrorists.

He repeated accusations that Syria continues to develop weapons of mass destruction, including "one of the most advanced Arab-state chemical weapons capabilities."

Syria's foreign minister, Farouk al-Sharaa staunchly rejected the accusations, saying that Damascus was willing to meet "reasonable" U.S. demands within the framework of international legitimacy.

Appearing at a news conference with European Commissioner for External Relations Christopher Patten, Farouk said, "This is not the first time in which the U.S. Congress makes an unjust accusation against Syria."

Bolton charged at the hearing that Syria took a series of hostile actions against coalition forces, allowing equipment to flow into Iraq on the eve of and during the war.

"Syria permitted volunteers to pass into Iraq to attack and kill our service members during the war and is still doing so," he said.

But Bolton also said there currently is no evidence indicating that Syria has transferred weapons of mass destruction to terrorist organizations or that it would permit such groups to acquire them. However, he did say that "serious ties to numerous terrorist groups underlie the reason for our continued anxiety."

Bolton said the administration has been unable to confirm that before the war, Iraq covertly transferred weapons of mass destruction to Syria in an attempt to hide them from U.N. inspectors.

Testifying before the House International Relations Committee panel on the Middle East and Central Asia, Bolton asked its members to be patient and allow Secretary of State Colin Powell time to bring about a change in Syria's behavior.

Ranking Democrat Gary Ackerman of New York criticized the Bush administration for not matching its tough rhetoric against Syria with action.

He proposed a downgrading in diplomatic relations by not sending a U.S. ambassador to Damascus or allowing a Syrian envoy to come to Washington. Both countries currently do not have ambassadors in each other's capitals.

During a May visit to Damascus, Powell asked Syria to close the offices of Damascus-based radical Palestinian factions, like Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and to prevent fighters from crossing into Iraq to participate in armed attacks on the coalition forces.

"What (U.S. Secretary of State Colin) Powell said about Syria's cooperation, I ask: who is cooperating with America as America wants? America has too many demands. If they are reasonable and realistic, Syria is ready to cooperate," the Syrian foreign minister said Tuesday.

This story can be found at: http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGAHMOD5OKD.html