The Hindu : Front Page : Syria leaves Lebanon after 29-year stay

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Wednesday, Apr 27, 2005

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Syria leaves Lebanon after 29-year stay

Atul Aneja

MANAMA: Syria has pulled out all its troops from Lebanon, ending a stay that lasted 29 years.

The last batch of around 200 Syrian soldiers gathered in the Beqa'a valley for a farewell parade.

They shouted slogans praising the Syrian President, Bashar Al-Assad, and received medals, as the Lebanese military band played.

Syrian troops had entered Lebanon in 1976 to quell a civil war. They remained inside the country after Lebanon's neighbour Israel captured the southern portion of the county in the early eighties.

The assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minister, Rafik Hariri, in February, for which many accused Syria, ratcheted up pressure on Damascus for its withdrawal. Syria has denied any role in Hariri's killing. United Nations officials will now ascertain whether the pull out, for which April 30 was the deadline, has been completed.

The U.N. Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, will also deliver a report on the implementation of the Security Council resolution 1559, which called for the pull out of all foreign forces from Lebanon. Syria has also removed its intelligence assets from Lebanon, which has included the withdrawal of its intelligence chief Rustom Ghazaleh.

Mr. Ghazaleh was present at the farewell ceremony at the Rayak air base in the eastern Beqa'a valley.

AFP reports from Jerusalem:

Israel hailed the departure of Syrian troops from Lebanon as an opportunity to move toward peace with Beirut but stressed it also wanted to see the back of the Shia militia Hezbollah.

``The whole world is crossing its fingers,'' the Deputy Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, told reporters on a visit to the north of Israel on the day that the last remaining Syrian troops left Lebanon ending a 29-year military presence.

``After the Syrian occupation of Lebanon comes to an end, we hope to see the Hezbollah occupation end as well, and that we will all see a free and democratic Lebanon living in peace and prosperity next to us.''

Hezbollah, which is backed by both Syria and Iran, is still involved in sporadic clashes with Israeli troops across the Lebanese border. The Israeli Foreign Minister, Silvan Shalom, hoped on Monday that the troop pullout could pave the way to peace.

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