Word: assads
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...other Western nations are participating somewhat reluctantly in the debate. It was literally forced on them by the Syrians. Last November President Hafez Assad refused to extend the mandate of the U.N. Disengagement Observer Force on the Golan Heights unless the Council scheduled a review of the Middle East situation and allowed the P.L.O. to take part. The presence of the P.L.O. prompted an Israeli boycott of the Council session; Premier Yitzhak Rabin's Cabinet unanimously resolved "not to conduct negotiations with terrorist organizations in any forum." A high Israeli official agreed that even "mentioning Palestinians makes them...
...Assad has devoted more energy to compacting power and asserting Syria's diplomatic eminence in the Middle East than to solving his country's domestic problems. Although the President is regarded as scrupulously honest, the vast, bumbling Syrian bureaucracy is ridden with corruption...
...Under Assad, Syrians of late no longer worry about sudden, late-night visits by secret police. But the government is vigilant about dissent, and the occasional crackdowns can be both swift and harsh. Last April, for example, 200 people were rounded up and imprisoned on the eve of the Baath Party Congress, probably because they were not Assad men. Publicly, however, they were charged with aiding Iraq, which is governed by a rival wing of the Baath movement. Although relations between Baghdad and Damascus have improved, the two neighbors have frequently been at the brink of war - sometimes over ideology...
Washington, for its part, fears that Assad could upset the delicate Middle East balance by pressing too hard for the Palestinians or by allowing the fedayeen to carry out more Golan raids, which would provoke Israeli retaliation against Syria, increasing the danger of renewed war. At least, however, Assad has effectively stifled all meaningful opposition at home. As one diplomat puts it, his "instincts for survival are impressive." To ensure the safety of his regime, the President has a Praetorian Guard, consisting of 25,000 men under the command of his brother Rifaat Assad, 34. In any case, Washington hopes...
Interviewing President Hafez Assad in Damascus last week, TIME Beirut Bureau Chief Karsten Prager and Correspondent William Marmon asked the question on everyone's mind - would Syria renew the Golan Heights mandate? "No decision, no decision," answered a grinning Assad in English. Prager and Marmon found Assad visibly delighted by the suspense he had created over the situation. Otherwise, though, the Syrian President was thoughtful and straightforward as he sketched his views on the prospects for a Middle East peace settlement. Excerpts from the 2½-hour conversation...