Beirut- Syria has urged its citizens in Lebanon to leave the
country before July 15 because of fears that the volatile political
climate in the country will deteriorate, Syrian sources said Monday.
'In the past few days, all Syrian nationals were asked through
the Syrian government to leave, as Lebanon's current political crisis
may become violent,' said a Syrian construction worker who requested
anonymity. 'We are asked to leave Lebanon before July 15.'
Hundreds of thousands of Syrian workers, mainly farmers and
construction workers, used to work in Lebanon. But their numbers have
noticeably dwindled since the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese
prime minister Rafik Hariri, which many Lebanese blame on Syria.
July 15 comes one day before a special UN Security Council meeting
which is expected to discuss the possibility of stationing
international experts on the Syria-Lebanon border in order to
monitor illegal arms trafficking to the Shiite Hezbollah movement,
thought to be originating from Iran and Syria.
The Security Council is also expected to meet next week to
discuss a key report on the assassination of Hariri, a development
which may bode ill for Syria.
On July 5 the Iranian news agency IRNA reported that Syrian
authorities had instructed all Syrian citizens residing in Lebanon to
leave Lebanon in July.
Observers believe that the Syrian authorities may resort to
closing the border with Lebanon.
The latest rumours have sparked caused anxiety and fear among the
Lebanese.
'I am trying to take my kids out of Lebanon on July 10 to a
nearby Arab country to observe the situation until the end of
August,' housewife Amal Salameh said. 'If things stays the same I
will return, if not I will take them back to the US.'
'There is probably nothing in it, but we're told to expect some
major event on that day,' said Rana Naamani, another Lebanese
housewife who decided to go to the mountains northeast of Beirut to
stay away from the capital.
Almost a year after the blistering July 12 war between Israel and
Hezbollah, Lebanon is mired in political and economic crisis and
faces a deadly new challenge from an al-Qaeda-inspired Islamist
militia.
At the heart of the crisis lies the issue of establishing an
international tribunal to try suspects for the killing of Hariri.
Six pro-Syrian ministers stepped down last November in protest at
the government's approval of plans to set up the UN tribunal.
Since the resignations, opposition factions contend that the
government, led by Prime Minister Fouad Seniora, has lost its
legitimacy and all decisions made by it are invalid.
Some figures in the pro-Syrian opposition are now threatening to
create a second government after they failed to reach an agreement to
form a national unity cabinet Setting up a second government may
prevent accord on a parliamentary vote, due in September, to elect a
successor to outgoing Syrian-backed President Emile Lahoud.
Analysts believe that a settlement to the crisis is now beyond the
Lebanese and must be found between Washington, Paris, and regional
actors Damascus, Riyadh and Tehran.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
USA
Your Talkback on this Story