Word: syrian
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...this time the kidnapers were asking for a much more direct kind of contact. They called for John Kelly, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, to fly to the Syrian capital of Damascus "to coordinate some final steps to guarantee success within 48 hours." Their note also cited unspecified "reciprocal moves" that they expected from the U.S. That was too much for an Administration mindful of the Iran-contra debacle and determined to avoid being drawn into negotiations with the kidnapers. At a press conference in Key Largo, Fla., where he had flown to discuss European affairs with...
...snatch it away? This time hope was not in vain. On Sunday, kidnapers set free American hostage Robert Polhill, 55, one of three American teachers who had been seized more than three years ago from the campus of Beirut University College. Polhill, a New Yorker, was released to Syrian army officers near a seaside hotel in Beirut and then driven to Damascus, where he was handed over to U.S. Ambassador Edward Djerejian...
Syria and Iraq expressed anger at the move, predicting that it would adversely affect their agriculture and power generation. Long-brewing tensions over the dam increased last summer when Ozal observed that his country might someday block the Euphrates to force an end to Syrian support of Kurdish separatists in Turkey. Later he backed away from the threat...
...peace treaty was signed. And Syria remained the most stubborn holdout until last week, when Damascus and Cairo announced that the two countries would resume relations after a twelve-year hiatus. The restored ties will be celebrated sometime in January at a meeting between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Syrian President Hafez Assad. One possibly helpful result of their detente: a moderation in Syrian opposition to current Middle East peace initiatives...
...death toll soared, with hundreds of bodies lying in the streets. There were even unconfirmed reports that Syrian and Libyan mercenaries were aiding the pro-Ceausescu forces. As the fighting intensified, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev offered to send medical aid to the anti-Ceausescu forces, and Western diplomats suggested that the growing bloodshed might even lead to direct Soviet intervention on the side of the revolutionaries...