EDITORIAL : THE KHALEEJ TIMES, UAE

Syria in scope

Syria’s troubled political front is already mired in violence and bloodshed with the situation escalating rapidly beyond control.

At this juncture it may now face additional pressure from the nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA.  A meeting of the IAEA is currently underway to determine Syria’s alleged illicit nuclear activity. The conclusion being drawn now is that the suspected nuclear site at Deir Alzour destroyed by Israel in 2007 may have been a nuclear reactor, a fact denied 
by Damascus.

The question is why is this being brought up now, especially when Syria’s relations with United States, prior to the eruption of protests across the MENA region were on the mend. Syria is a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, (NPT) and thus has a right to enrich its fuel for civilian nuclear energy — non-military use.  Considering the long-standing trust deficit with  the western states and animosity with Israel, Syria has been in the eye of the storm for long. The special relations the Syrian government of President Bashar Al Assad enjoys with Iran has further alienated it from the rest of the 
world community.

There are contending opinions among the IAEA members regarding Syria’s nuclear posture, with some defending its greater openness and cooperation and others blaming it for not allowing access to certain cites in recent years.  But the issue of whether Syria is pursuing a covert military nuclear programme at this point may well be lost given the bigger stakes at play.

Assad’s regime is under a serious threat from opposition groups who have despite use of all-out state force have stuck to their guns, demanding the ouster of the ruling setup. The growing number of deaths, arrests and use of brutal tactics against the protesters has set in force a vicious cycle.  Ironically, any reforms and concessions by the government in order to appease the masses has only backfired. The people have outright rejected the proposed changes, saying they have come too late. The inability of the government to toe a single policy and implement the promised reforms has rendered the whole process to be a mock exercise.

It is feared that further instability in Syria may well start a bigger regional conflagration, one involving neighbouring Israel and even Iran. Particularly disturbing is the rising number of civilian casualties of the Syrian protests. Something must be done on an immediate basis to start talks with the opposition groups in order to end the instability and work out a negotiated settlement for the future of 
Syrian politics.

Going over the Golan

Fissures in the Middle East are exploding. The clashes on the Golan Heights border town, in which Israel used force to disperse Syrian protesters, were not an isolated incident.

This could become an order of the day as the Arab population in the conflict zones is in a state of flux. Syrians who are facing the barrel of the gun have been trying to sneak into the bordering countries, and the recent clashes on the Lebanese border are a case in point. However, this clash in the Golan Valley is different from the perspective that people here chose to stage a rally to defy the artificial lines of demarcation, and to vent their anger against Israeli occupation of their territory. The event coincided with the 44th anniversary of the 1967 Middle East war and henceforth Tel Aviv’s encroachment of the strategic heights. Though it is untenable to believe that unarmed protesters could pose even an iota of challenge to the Israeli might, it goes on to prove the simmering unrest that has not been addressed for decades, and how serious this could turn out to be.

The 300 or so odd Syrian agitators are just a stark reminder of geopolitical upheavals in the making, and which are getting compounded this time around with unrest at home and on the international front. With volatility in the region on the rise, it seems to be a perfect time for addressing the inevitable. US President Barack Obama has made a strong point by advising Israel to go back to the borders of 1967, and make permanent peace with its Arab neighbours. The fact that none of the Middle East nations who have a territorial dispute with the Jewish state have objected to the new roadmap should be read as an encouraging and feasible route to peace and security. Israel neither has any moral locus standi nor any more rabbits to pull from its hat in confronting this new equation. Trading land for peace is sine qua non and cannot be dispensed with. The sooner it is done, the better. At the same time, it would be futile for Damascus to play to the gallery, especially at times when a serious uprising for fundamental rights is raging right under its nose. Sympathising with the Palestinians is justified but not before putting to rest the concerns that Syrians nurse on their own turf. Going over the Golan shouldn’t merely be a stunt. Israel can best be confronted when Arab countries are on the same wavelength and without any skeletons in the cupboard.