Syria collaborated with Saddam's regime! It has hosted more global-reach anti-US terrorist and narco-terrorist organizations (from Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Mideast) than any other terrorist regime. In defiance of international resolutions, it has ruthlessly occupied Lebanon, dismantling its Christian government during the Oct. 1990 massacre of thousands of Christian activists. It has established the Medellin East trail of heroin, reaching all the way to US Inner Cities. Its track record of human rights abuse pales that of Ceaucescu's Romania. It has collaborated with No. Korea, China, Iran and Russia in the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. It perfected the counterfeit of $100 bills. More Americans were murdered by Syrian supported terrorists than by Saddam and Qadaffi combined (Beirut 1983, PanAm-103 1988, Khobar Towers 1996, etc.). For further data, plse see the Jerusalem Cloakroom #83, 82, 77, 67, 63 at www.acpr.org.il <http://www.acpr.org.il> ). For Immediate Release: April 11, 2003 Contact: Gary Meltz 202.225.2464
TIME TO GET SERIOUS ABOUT SYRIA
US Must Keep Pressure on State Sponsors of Terror in the Middle East
Engel and Ros-Lehtinen Reintroduce the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act
Washington, D.C. - Today, Reps. Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) announced they are introducing the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003 in the House of Representatives which holds Syria accountable for its support for terrorism, occupation of Lebanon, and possession and continued development of weapons of mass destruction.
"Now that Saddam Hussein's regime is defeated, it is time for America to get serious about Syria, " said Rep. Engel, a member of the International Relations Committee. "The Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act is the first-step to addressing Syria's destabilizing role in the Middle East. The United States must not tolerate Syria's continued support of the most deadly terrorist organizations in the world, its development of weapons of mass destruction, and its occupation of Lebanon."
The Syria Accountability Act is a comprehensive piece of legislation that gives the President of the United States tools to impose penalties on Syria if the rogue nation fails to correct its behavior immediately. Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Rick Santorum (R-PA) will introduce companion legislation in the Senate.
On March 30th, Secretary of State Colin Powell said that, "Syria can continue direct support for terrorist groups and the dying regime of Saddam Hussein, or it can embark on a different and more hopeful course. Either way, Syria bears the responsibility for its choices, and for the consequences." Rep. Engel believes the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003 lays out what Damascus must do to shed its rogue status or face what Secretary Powell described as "consequences."
"On September 11th the equation changed and the United States can no longer afford to sit by as countries like Syria harbor terrorists and occupy a neighboring nation. America must send Syria a message that its policies must change. The Syria Accountability Act is a measured, but straightforward attempt to correct the behavior of the Assad regime," said Rep. Engel.
Rep. Engel concluded, "It is time for the Administration and Congress to get tough with a charter member of the State Department's list of state sponsors of terrorism. Syria needs to get out of Lebanon, clean out the terrorists, and stop building weapons of mass destruction. The Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act is the right first-step."