Syria "Involved," Whatever That Means

The UN released its overdue UN investigation into the assassination of former Lebanese premier Rafik Hariri, and points a partial finger:

A U.N. investigation concluded that high-ranking Syrian and Lebanese security officials were involved in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, according to a report released Thursday.

The strongly worded report by chief investigator Detlev Mehlis said the two nations' intelligence services kept tabs on Hariri before his assassination by wiretapping his phone, and there was evidence a telecommunications antenna was jammed near the scene of the car bomb that killed him and 20 others on Feb. 14.

The decision to assassinate Hariri "could not have been taken without the approval of top-ranked Syrian security official and could not have been further organized without the collusion of their counterparts in the Lebanese security services," the report said.

Mehlis' 53-page report accused Syrian authorities of trying to mislead his investigation, and directly accused Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa of lying in a letter sent to his commission.

(source: AP via Yahoo)

FT published excerpts from the report; this is paragraph 209:

It is the Commission’s conclusion that, after having interviewed witnesses and suspects in the Syrian Arab Republic and establishing that many leads point directly towards Syrian security officials as being involved with the assassination, it is incumbent upon Syria to clarify a considerable part of the unresolved questions. While the Syrian authorities, after initial hesitation, have cooperated to a limited degree with the Commission, several interviewees tried to mislead the investigation by giving false or inaccurate statements. The letter addressed to the Commission by the Foreign Minister of the Syrian Arab Republic proved to contain false information. The full picture of the assassination can only be reached through an extensive and credible investigation that would be conducted in an open and transparent manner to the full satisfaction of international scrutiny.

An investigation? Call for Mr. Blix? Mr. Hans Blix?

Michael Young at the (Lebanese) Daily Star expected more:

Mehlis will publish "the names of suspects in security posts, former politicians and civilians," and that this will include the names of Syrian officers. This seems to square with a statement last week by an unidentified Arab diplomatic official, who told the daily Al-Hayat that the report would "not include final results that are 100 percent conclusive," but that it would reveal that Hariri's assassination was planned months in advance and "was institutional not the act of an individual." The report, the source continued, would also direct accusations against members of the Syrian intelligence services and Mehlis would conclude that "the orders came from a high level." According to Germany's Stern magazine, Syrian President Bashar Assad's brother-in-law, Assef Shawkat, will be named as a suspect, as will the former intelligence chief in Lebanon, Rustom Ghazaleh.

It's a good start, but what are the consequences?

Annan has apparently already ruled out an international tribunal, but as Mehlis indicated in his interim report, there is little confidence that Lebanon, alone, can successfully carry through a judicial process, particularly if Syrian officials were involved.

That's not good enough, says President Bush, supported by France:

In what is being hailed as the toughest international action taken against Syria, U.S. and France will propose two resolutions at the UN Security Council next Tuesday, to hold Syria liable for meddling in Lebanon, said The Washington Post.

Over the past months, the U.S. has stepped up pressure on Syria by openly criticizing Damascus' alleged support for the insurgency in Iraq and is expected to request the UN Security Council apply pressure on Syria.

France and other nations, according to The Washington Post, want to limit resolutions to "Syria's intervention in Lebanon" to prevent an Arab backlash.

What's tough about that?

Baby Assad's Syria is fighting back:

Assad is trying desperately to prepare a defense of his regime in the event that the UN report is as damaging as expected. A Syrian diplomatic offensive is in the works, reaching out to Russia, China, and India as well as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, to help withstand anticipated fallout from the Mehlis report.

What fallout? In the looking glass world of Turtle Bay, "strongly worded" means "we can't stop you."

I'm going back to sleep. Wake me when Annan issues a fatwa against Assad.

(via LGF)