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| Saudi Arabia Attempting
To Persuade Syria Over Lebanon Rift Joseph S. Mayton, All Headline News CAIRO, Egypt - Saudi Arabia is attempting to persuade Syria to accept an international tribunal in Lebanon to try suspects in the killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, Lebanon's Central News Agency (CNA) reported. The international tribunal has been a key source of tension between the Lebanese National Opposition led by Hezbollah and the government of current Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. Syrian and Saudi Arabian officials are expected to meet in Spain in coming days in order to discuss the matter further. It would be the first meeting between senior officials from both countries since a rift widened after last summer's Israel-Hezbollah war. If Riyadh is successful in convincing Damascus to accept the tribunal it would take much of the pressure off Hezbollah in Lebanon, which analysts argue could hasten an end to the current political impasse in the small Middle Eastern nation. Hariri was killed with 22 other people in a massive suicide truck bombing on Feb. 14, 2005 and many Lebanese blamed Syria for the killing, an allegation denied by Damascus. |
