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U.S. official says Syria should be barred from regional summit
By Barak Ravid and Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondents and News Agencies

The United States is opposed to Syria attending Washington's regional peace summit in November, Israeli academics Monday told Haaretz, based on their conversation with a senior U.S. official. The academics say the official described Syria as "a vicious, brutal regime allied to Iran strategically," which subscribes to "the most barbaric anti-Semitic views."

But after eleven days of speculations regarding the alleged Israel Air Force strike on Syria, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Monday that he respects Syrian President Bashar Assad and is ready, given the right conditions, to launch peace talks with Damascus.

"I have a lot of respect for the Syrian leader and for Syria's conduct. They have internal problems, but we have no reason to rule out dialogue with Syria," Olmert said in a briefing for Russian-language media outlets in Israel.

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"As I've said in the past, we want to make peace with everyone," Olmert continued. "If the conditions ripen, we are ready to make peace with Syria, with no preconditions and no ultimate demands."

Since U.S. President W. George Bush's administration announced several months ago that it intends to hold the summit, Washington has not clarified its position on whether Syria should attend as well. Several officials were recently quoted as saying that the summit will be attended by countries that can "contribute" to the peace process.

The academics talked with the American after Syria announced that Israel Air Force fighter jets had violated its airspace. The Israelis told the official that Syria was interested in attending the conference and was willing to meet American demands that it offer less support for Hamas and Hezbollah as part of a comprehensive peace deal with Israel.

The academics believe that Damascus' continued diplomatic isolation could lead Syria to impede or ruin negotiations. They quote the official as saying that Syria "is allied to Iran strategically," and "engaged in helping kill Americans in Iraq, helping the worst Palestinian terrorist forces, desperate to reassert its rule over Lebanon, and sponsoring not simply anti-Zionist but the most barbaric anti-Semitic views."

According to the group of academics - who wish to remain anonymous - the high-ranking American official went on to say that Syria was intransigent in its approach, and would not comprehensively change its ways so as to participate in the peace process.

Additionally, the official reportedly informed the academics that international mediators - mostly from the European Union - have been engaged in talks with Damascus over the past months concerning the prospect of renewing peace talks with Israel. But, according to the academics, the official said the mediators "came back empty-handed."

So far, Syria has not said that it would not attend the summit, but has criticized the conference's current makeup. "The summit must include all the Middle East's concerned parties," Damascus said.

Supporting the prospect of Syrian participation are Russia, Spain, Portugal, Austria and apparently also Germany. Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is also in favor of Syria's attendance and has reportedly talked about the matter with Assad a few days ago.

European Union Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana, by contrast, supports Washington's stance. He is apparently joined by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who does not view Syria's attendance as a positive outcome.

Meretz MK Zahava Gal-On told Attorney General Menachem Mazuz on Monday that he should demand Olmert provide the Knesset with details of the incident.

In a letter to Mazuz, Gal-On, who heads the Meretz Knesset faction, wrote, "In light of reports by foreign sources and the total blackout imposed by Israel on what happened or didn't happen, I am asking you to present the prime minister with his duty to report on all unusual IDF activity to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee or to one of its subcommittees."

Gal-On wrote in her letter to Mazuz on Monday that the Knesset must oversee all IDF action beyond Israel's borders, "if not in advance, then at least in retrospect." She said that if Olmert does not update the committee, then it will become a "members' club that hears briefings without the capability for real supervision."

Gal-On also referenced the Rubinstein Committee, headed by Professor Amnon Rubinstein, which scrutinized oversight of the defense establishment, and recommended the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee be aware of IDF activities in order to ensure parliamentary oversight.
At the end of the letter, Gal-On wrote that "the existence of and respect for these constitutional principles are crucial, and unrelated to the wisdom, benefit or success the government attributes to one IDF action or another."

Meretz Chairman Yossi Beilin told Israel Radio that he did not support Gal-On's letter. He said he does not see cause for criticism of the matter, believing instead confidential matters should remain so.
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  1.   Wow 03:42  |  Joseph 18/09/07
  2.   Syria Ought To Go 04:09  |  MIKE 18/09/07
  3.   Countries that can "contribute" to the peace process. 04:21  |  Maureen Ann 18/09/07
  4.   Sneaky Syria Trying To Slip Some... 04:38  |  Yosemite 18/09/07
  5.   isn`t that up to Israel & Syria to decide? 04:43  |  DrSteveB 18/09/07
  6.   Maureen Ann 04:45  |  Ruth 18/09/07
  7.   Maureen Ann, you are correct 04:53  |  Oddvark 18/09/07
  8.   The UnPeace, NonSummit 04:55  |  Mark Lincoln 18/09/07
  9.   There are two nations which oppose any peace, any where 05:00  |  Mark Lincoln 18/09/07
  10.   Let us be certain 05:04  |  Mark Lincoln 18/09/07
  11.   Ask Syrian Jews in Brooklyn! 05:06  |  Dovy 18/09/07
  12.   More Catholic than the Pope? 05:07  |  Dovy 18/09/07
  13.   What a joke! 05:09  |  Phil 18/09/07
  14.   To Joseph: A Peace Conference w/o Hamas is Futile 05:10  |  Dave Levy 18/09/07
  15.   Olmert will sell off Israel 05:13  |  Peter 18/09/07
  16.   "senior U.S. official" - the RAT Elliot Abrams 05:30  |  Joe 18/09/07
  17.   Bush is a puppet 05:41  |  Harold 18/09/07
  18.   Maureen Ann 06:12  |  Victor 18/09/07
  19.   all or nothing 06:23  |  Space 18/09/07
  20.   No hope without Mr Assad 06:25  |  Monsieur Farfour 18/09/07
  21.   Mark Lincoln, are you really on Earth? 07:12  |  Denton 18/09/07
  22.   This idiotic conference will be a non event.recently during the 07:37  |  lakshmi 18/09/07
  23.   If Bush holds a summit and only Israel and the US attend... 07:53  |  Johnboy 18/09/07
  24.   To Dovy: Not catholic but evangelical christian 08:13  |  Uri 18/09/07
  25.   has this summit a meaning?? 08:27  |  michel 18/09/07
  26.   Barbaric, antisemitic US official spouts nonsense 08:28  |  Ivar 18/09/07
  27.   Syria is not really interested in peace, so why should it be part 08:28  |  Dalia 18/09/07
  28.   Syria MUST be invited, or it`s no peace conference 08:49  |  Ivar 18/09/07
  29.   No peace with Syria 08:56  |  Gregor 18/09/07
  30.   A cosy chat, then, for Rice and Olmert 08:59  |  Clickfool 18/09/07
  31.   Mark Lincoln 09:00  |  Tony 18/09/07
  32.   Dovy 09:12  |  Anthony 18/09/07
  33.   I am just rying to get this right 09:16  |  Mary 18/09/07
  34.   GW Busch way of peace 09:17  |  Imad 18/09/07
  35.   End Days Uri 09:23  |  Gregor 18/09/07
  36.   to # 7 oddvark - you are odd 09:23  |  Steve the Pals. 18/09/07
  37.   Uri and Ivar 09:26  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 18/09/07
  38.   Have courage, my dear Americans, and hope! 09:33  |  christoph 18/09/07
  39.   Israeli and US lies all over again 09:41  |  mehmet 18/09/07
  40.   Olmert 09:56  |  tb 18/09/07
  41.   Cancel the conference 10:03  |  Michael 18/09/07
  42.   SYRIA SHOULD RETALIATE, SO SHE WOULD BE WELCOME 10:18  |  indrajaya 18/09/07
  43.   #Oddvark. Your odd view of the world. 10:27  |  Maureen Ann 18/09/07
  44.   Let reality set 10:46  |  Eli 18/09/07
  45.   may i congratulate india and israel 10:54  |  lakshmi 18/09/07
  46.   "palestinians are not going to give up the land" 10:57  |  lakshmi 18/09/07
  47.   Mark Lincoln ? Is that your friend speaking? 11:00  |  Eli 18/09/07
  48.   mehmet i wonder how many israelis come on to 11:01  |  ataturk 18/09/07
  49.   johnboy`s persona 11:04  |  zebulun 18/09/07
  50.   # 37 ... Fake Cipora Alert 11:04  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 18/09/07
  51.   johnboy "so lets insult the saudis" 11:07  |  zebulun 18/09/07
  52.   johnboy i agree that a meeting would be a farce 11:08  |  zebulun 18/09/07
  53.   "Academics" 11:09  |  Ami 18/09/07
  54.   johnboy i sometimes think why you even bother 11:10  |  zebulun 18/09/07
  55.   WAR MONGERS ANONYMOUS CLUB - Israel Branch meets "Specialist"-#1 11:14  |  ALL 4 PEACE 18/09/07
  56.   Mary #33 11:17  |  Eli 18/09/07
  57.   Bush as the Milosevic of this decade 11:19  |  Michael 18/09/07
  58.   Instead of A Peace Conference the U.S. & Israel CONFER about WAR 11:21  |  18/09/07
  59.   Why boost the Assad regime? 11:35  |  Jonathan S 18/09/07
  60.   Syria and its little helpers 11:36  |  Jonathan S 18/09/07
  61.   more futile comedy all around call it pizza 11:39  |  victor hardman 18/09/07
  62.   Syria 11:46  |  Jason 18/09/07
  63.   ATTACKING SYRIA 11:59  |  Neutered Observer 18/09/07
  64.   Clickfool On Cosy Chats 12:05  |  Joanne 18/09/07
  65.   #49, is a fake 12:17  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 18/09/07
  66.   Olmert Just keep Israel with Jerusalme its Capital. 12:18  |  Akram Zekaria 18/09/07
  67.   For Cipora on Fake Cipora # 49 12:21  |  Clickfool 18/09/07
  68.   Fake Posts Alert,45&46! 12:23  |  lakshmi 18/09/07
  69.   All Arab Countries Must Participate! 12:23  |  Mark 18/09/07
  70.   #49, is not my post, but a fake 12:28  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 18/09/07
  71.   A Collection of Half-Wits 12:28  |  Paulo 18/09/07
  72.   Syria to be banned from peace conference 12:32  |  iletzter 18/09/07
  73.   JOHNBOY You got the guest list already?Another Johnboy "insider"? 12:41  |  PETER S .M. 18/09/07
  74.   Who is that official 12:45  |  Johnnyboy 18/09/07
  75.   MAUREEN N.repeating your slogans daily does not make them true 12:47  |  PETER S.M. 18/09/07
  76.   After the cold war 12:48  |  Dav 18/09/07
  77.   JOHN BOY "plucky prince","plucky country" what an imagination! 12:52  |  PETER S.M. 18/09/07
  78.   Why no peace! 12:54  |  Dav 18/09/07
  79.   The US warlover 12:58  |  Dav