The U.S. mainstream press often transmits the allegation that Syria embarked on a nuclear program with the help of North Korea, and suggests that Israel's mysterious attack on Syria on Sept. 6, 2007, was justified by this fact. -- Thus on Jun. 20, the New York Times noted in passing that "In September, Israeli aircraft bombed a structure in Syria that American officials said housed a nuclear reactor built with the aid of North Korea." -- Seymour Hersh, however, writing in the New Yorker in February 2008, all but ruled out the possibility that the target of "Operation Orchard" was a nuclear site. -- On Monday, the Financial Times of London reported that the president of Syria has promised the International Atomic Energy Association its "full cooperation" and that "Syria has signalled that it is confident of the outcome of a probe into an alleged nuclear installation."[1] -- "Mr. Assad has been invited to attend a summit in France in July, which many Syrians consider ends attempts to isolate Syria," Ferry Biedermann noted, along with other diplomatic developments lessening tensions with Damascus....
1. World Middle East SYRIA UPBEAT ON NUCLEAR PROBE
By Ferry Biedermann Financial Times (London)
June 23, 2008 http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/62ea0abe-40bb-11dd-bd48-0000779fd2ac.html BEIRUT -- Syria has signalled that it is confident of the outcome of a probe into an alleged nuclear installation begun by the International Atomic Energy Agency yesterday. President Bashar al-Assad promised full co-operation with the IAEA and called American claims that a building was part of a nuclear program undertaken with North Korean assistance "fabricated 100 per cent." The building was demolished in an Israeli air strike last September. The inspection takes place in a climate that is seen as positive for the Assad government. Syria and Israel last month announced indirect peace talks. Mr. Assad has been invited to attend a summit in France in July, which many Syrians consider ends attempts to isolate Syria. An agreement reached in Doha by the rival Lebanese factions received a Syrian stamp of approval. A team headed by IAEA deputy director Olli Heinonen arrived in Syria yesterday and is expected to stay until Wednesday. The inspectors will visit the site of the bombing, in al-Kibar, but their movements may be limited. Syria has not allowed the inspection of other sites. The head of the nuclear watchdog agency, Mohamed ElBaradei, last week cast doubt on his inspectors' ability to establish the nature of the site so long after the air strike. "It is doubtful that we will find anything there now, assuming there was anything there in the first place." Mr. ElBaradei has blamed the U.S. government for not coming forward with evidence sooner and Israel for destroying the possible evidence in its attack. He cast doubt on Syria's capacity to manage a nuclear program. The U.S. State Department said last week: "The reality here is that there's some pretty strong evidence out there about what Syria was doing." Syria has close ties both with Iran and with North Korea.
|
