'Israeli attack will boost us'
2003-10-07 14:32
Cairo - The Israeli attack on Syria will enhance the country's role in the Middle East, instead of diminishing it as the Israelis seek, says Syrian President Bashar Assad.
In his first comments to the media since Israeli fighter bombers struck Syrian territory on Sunday for the first time in 20 years, Assad told the pan-Arab newspaper, al Hayat, that Israel was led by a "government of war" that employs war to "justify its existence".
"There is no doubt the role Syria plays in the various issues in our region is painful to this (Israeli) government. What happened (on Sunday) was a failed Israeli attempt to undercut this role," Assad told the London-based paper.
"We can, with full confidence, say that what happened will only make Syria's role more effective and influential in events in the region - contrary to what this (Israeli) government wants," said Assad.
Sunday's airstrike hit what Israel called a camp of the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad, about 24km from Damascus.
It was in retaliation for a suicide bombing in the Israeli city of Haifa on Saturday in which 19 people were killed. Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the bombing.
'We have our cards to play'[
No one was killed in the Israeli strike. Villagers said the militants' camp had been abandoned years ago.
Assad did not say how Syria would respond to the attack.
Asked about pressure from the United States, which has accused Syria of supporting terrorists and allowing fighters to cross into Iraq, Assad said: "We are not a superpower, but we are not a weak state either.
"We're not a country without cards... We are not a state that can be ignored in the issues under discussion."
He said he believed Syria's dialogue with Washington should continue, but he also accused the United States of using Syria as a scapegoat.
"In reality, if the United States failed in the farthest part of Asia... it would blame Syria and Iran - this is taken for granted," Assad said.
Syria, which fought Israel in the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, has taken the hardest line among Arab states in peace negotiations with Israel, refusing to recognise the Jewish state and insisting on the complete return of all captured territory.
- AP