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Last update - 09:07 05/07/2009
U.S., Saudis push Syria over IDF withdrawal from Shaba Farms
By Zvi Bar'el
Tags: Lebanon, Israel News, Syria 

Saudi Arabia and the United States are pressing Syria to demarcate its border with Lebanon, in order to allow for the beginning of an Israeli withdrawal from the disputed Shaba Farms area, straddling the border between Lebanon and the Golan Heights.

These moves come amid warming relations between Damascus and Washington. This past weekend Syrian President Bashar Assad issued an unofficial invitation to his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama to visit the Syrian capital.

Marking the Syrian-Lebanese border would neutralize the Israeli claim that Shaba Farms was previously Syrian territory, and that a withdrawal must be carried out only in the course of negotiations with Damascus. The United Nations also defines the area as Syrian territory, and did not call on Israel to pull back from it during its 2000 withdrawal from southern Lebanon.
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Withdrawing from the disputed area would also obviate one of Hezbollah's primary pretexts for continuing to maintain weapons to fight Israel's presence on what it considers Lebanese soil. In marking its border, however, Syria would be sending a strong message to Hezbollah that the militant group's accumulation of arms is no longer part of the country's military strategy.

Such a move would likely bolster the position of Saad Hariri, Lebanon's pro-West prime minister-delegate, as well. Hariri has stated that the Lebanese parliament must tackle the issue of disarming Hezbollah. He has also conditioned forming a government on the Hezbollah-led opposition holding no more than a third of the seats in parliament, thus preventing it from being able to veto key government decisions. The Lebanese Constitution stipulates that certain important decisions must be made with the ascent of two-thirds of parliamentarians.

Lebanese sources said recently that they expected Syria to agree to mark the border in an effort to win favor with both the United States and Egypt; Lebanon engaged in a diplomatic confrontation with the latter during Israel's operation in Gaza earlier this year.

The border delineation may occur after a new American ambassador is appointed to Syria. One of the leading candidates for the post is Daniel Kurtzer, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel.

Talks over the border issue began before the June 7 election in Lebanon, when acting U.S. assistant secretary of state Jeffrey Feltman and Daniel Shapiro, a Middle East expert with the National Security Council, presented the request to Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem. Moallem rejected the request, telling them, "Until the Farms are liberated from Israeli occupation, we won't mark the border."

Nonetheless, Moallem seems to have changed his position in recent days, announcing that the border mapping would begin in two months, but that demarcation would begin at Syria's northern frontier.

Meanwhile, Syria is also feeling pressure from Saudi Arabia, as King Abdullah has begun reaching out to Damascus after long-strained relations. Reports from Saudi Arabia indicate Abdullah is scheduled to travel to Damascus on Monday, and may convene a limited summit of Saudi, Syrian, Lebanese and Egyptian officials in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh.
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  1.   Withdraw from Shaba for peace; never withdraw from Golan 02:40  |  Mark Leaman 05/07/09
  2.   Kurtzer 02:58  |  ron 05/07/09
  3.   Shibaa farms and water rights! 04:10  |  Maxwell 05/07/09
  4.   Israel claims Shaba farms is Syrian 04:29  |  Mark Lincoln 05/07/09
  5.   Shaba is a dead issue 06:22  |  MichaelF 05/07/09
  6.   Syria has already admitted that Shaaba is Lebanese 06:39  |  Natallie Durson 05/07/09
  7.   Maxwell, do you mean? 06:47  |  Mark Lincoln 05/07/09
  8.   #3 Maxwell 07:06  |  JES 05/07/09
  9.   respondents please segregate yourselves 07:07  |  Mark Lincoln 05/07/09
  10.   #4 - Mark Lincoln 07:15  |  JES 05/07/09
  11.   Shaba Farms is just an excuse--there are a thousand more 08:14  |  IW 05/07/09
  12.   Oh, come on people... 08:37  |  utagawa 05/07/09
  13.   We should not give up the Golan : The Shaba Farm is part of ... 08:54  |  Lane 05/07/09
  14.   First time ever Syria NOT interested in occupying territory 09:26  |  Kenny 05/07/09
  15.   to Kenny 10:39  |  Mario 05/07/09
  16.   Assent 11:11  |  Peter 05/07/09
  17.   If Golan was Never Syria`s but 11:32  |  The Archives 05/07/09
  18.   How Can Syria Unilaterally Demarcate Her Border With Lebanon? 12:52  |  Jeff Northridge 05/07/09
  19.   Real issue - motive for disputing FACT Shaba is Lebanese 13:30  |  Mod 05/07/09
  20.   JES #8 `Not about water`? 13:37  |  Roo 05/07/09
  21.   mark lincoln, another lie of you 14:13  |  v 05/07/09
  22.   JES #8 Shebaa `Not about water` ... 14:43  |  Roo 05/07/09
  23.   To Mario, Thanks for proving IW`s Point 15:06  |  Glenn Headly 05/07/09
  24.   Un has caused confusion over this issue for years 15:11  |  Lynn 05/07/09
  25.   # 17 the archives 15:27  |  Axel 05/07/09
  26.   Syria officialy claims Shaba farms 15:37  |  Sam 05/07/09
  27.   To Glenn 15:44  |  Mario 05/07/09
  28.   Leave the Shaba farms, leave the West Bank, 16:01  |  David Spencer 05/07/09
  29.   JES #8 Shebaa `Not about water` ... 16:05  |  Roo 05/07/09
  30.   MARIO, ever heard of Syria`s claim to Lebanon (and Palestine) 16:14  |  Kenny 05/07/09
  31.   Natallie 16:30  |  Bev 05/07/09
  32.   Hizbullah`s worst nightmare 17:41  |  Lon 05/07/09
  33.   what happend to Israel? 18:12  |  Tony Silver 05/07/09
  34.   Shebaa Farms in Lebanon??? 18:23  |  Dan 05/07/09
  35.   Shaba 18:40  |  oz 05/07/09
  36.   david spencer 28 18:45  |  alan 05/07/09
  37.   re: #33 Tony silver 18:51  |  learn your history 05/07/09
  38.   Land issues aside... 18:51  |  Welshman 05/07/09
  39.   Give it to Lebanon 19:03  |  Michael 05/07/09
  40.   #22 - Roo, Interesting what you left out! 19:06  |  JES 05/07/09
  41.   31..clear unequivocal answer from Syria..they try not to give! 19:14  |  Jew-and Bookburner 05/07/09
  42.   dispute 19:27  |  oz 05/07/09
  43.   facts 19:33  |  steveleonard 05/07/09
  44.   Tony Silver the recycler 19:39  |  Bilbi 05/07/09
  45.   learn your history, learn your history 19:59  |  sfg 05/07/09
  46.   Israeli-Lebanese Reconciliation 20:09  |  sfg 05/07/09
  47.   Assad 20:12  |  oz 05/07/09
  48.   some people will have to work on their 21:48  |  oz 05/07/09
  49.   #40 but JES, `I` never made any silly claims. 23:08  |  Roo 05/07/09
  50.   To Mod #19 01:01  |  Jania 06/07/09
  51.   #40 but JES, *I* never made any silly claims. 01:42  |  Roo 06/07/09
  52.   Hezbollah`s main goal 06:31  |  Butros Dahu 06/07/09
  53.   Shabe Farms 04:22  |  Aida B Hidalgo 10/07/09
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