Assad: Syria backs Hizbullah

Syrian president tells Lebanese daily his country supports Shiite group because it fights Israel, says relations with Iran strategic; 'Syria-Lebanon border will be drawn only after Israel pulls out of Shebaa Farms,' he adds

Ali Waked
Israel News

"We support Hizbullah because it fights Israel, and our relations with Iran are strategic," Syrian President Bashar Assad was quoted as saying by the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar. In an interview published on Friday, Assad also addressed the Shebaa Farms dispute, saying the border between Syria and Lebanon will be demarcated only after Israel withdraws from the disputed land, adding that the UN will have no say in the matter.


The Shebaa Farms are a piece of land located on the Israel-Syria-Lebanon border, on the western slopes of Mount Dov. The territory was captured by Israel during the Six Day War in 1967, and since the end of the First Lebanon War the area has been a source of conflict between the two countries.


Earlier this month Assad said, "There is no escaping the fact that the day will come when we will free the Golan, through peace or through war."


In an interview with Qatari-based newspaper al-Sharq, the Syrian leader added, "All Israeli governments are the same: Ariel Sharon carried out a massacre in Palestine, and Barak aided the war in Gaza such that there is no difference between Right and Left in Israel."


Assad has made a number of contradictory statements lately regarding the peace process with Israel. A day before the induction of Benjamin Netanyahu's government he told the Arab League summit in Doha, Qatar that Arab countries "have no real partner in the peace process.


"The arrival of a Rightist government makes no difference, because in Israel, the Right, the Left and the Center... all reflect a reality which is that Israeli society is not ready for peace," said Assad.


However, in an interview with the New Yorker, published that same day, the Syrian leader he is interested in continuing the negotiations.



In an electronic interview with journalist Seymour Hersh, Assad said, "We have to wait a little while to see how things will evolve and how the situation will change. We still believe that we need to conclude a serious dialogue to lead us to peace.”

Thanks YNET News