Middle East References
April 19, 2004
Basless claims against Syria: Syria Urged to Do More in Iraq
The New York Times > International > Syria Urged to Do More in Iraq
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: April 19, 2004
Filed at 9:20 a.m. ET
WASHINGTON (AP) -- After new violence that flared near the Iraqi border with Syria left five Marines dead, the U.S. military's top general urged Damascus to do more to cut the flow of foreign fighters entering Iraq.
The warning Sunday from Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, came as the U.S. effort in Iraq suffered a setback when the new Spanish prime minister, fulfilling a campaign pledge, said he would withdraw the 1,300-member Spanish military contingent as soon as possible.
The battle Saturday on the Syrian-Iraqi border, in an area that had seen little fighting previously, left at least 25 Iraqis dead. Myers said the stability not only of Syria and Iraq, but also of the entire region is at stake.
``We know that the pathway into Iraq for many foreign fighters is through Syria. It's a fact. We know it. The Syrians know it,'' Myers told CNN's ``Late Edition.''
``The Syrians need to take this situation very seriously. They need to help us stop that infiltration of foreign fighters. It doesn't do their government any good.''
Syria has rejected claims it is allowing militants into Iraq. It says it is responsible for official crossing points between it and Iraq but acknowledges it does not have full control over the long, porous border.
[Today on NPR 19, April 2004, a reporter in the twon of the conflict claimed that no foreign fighters had been detained or observed in the town. The insurgents seemed to all be from Ramadi and Faluja.
Monday, 19 April, 2004, 10:01 GMT 11:01 UK
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3638889.stm
US warns Syria over Iraq
By Justin Webb
BBC correspondent in Washington
Syria's President Bashar al-Assad has been under US pressure
The Pentagon has warned Syria of the risks it faces if foreign fighters continue to use its territory to get into Iraq.
The warning comes after fierce fighting near Iraq's border with Syria over the weekend.
In a separate development, President Bush's Democratic party presidential challenger, John Kerry, has sharpened his attacks on the President's handling of the situation in Iraq.
The latest warning to Syria from the Bush administration was delivered by America's most senior soldier, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers.
He said America knew that the pathway into Iraq for many foreign fighters was through Syria.
"It's a fact," said Gen Myers. "We know it, the Syrians know it.
"The Syrians need to take this situation very seriously," he went on, "it doesn't do their government any good."
Daily onslaught
Gen Myers seemed to be suggesting that the foreign fighters might harm Syria through their destabilisation of the region.
He was not suggesting that America had any hostile action in mind.
