Syria: We'll file complaint with UN about IAF flyover

Syria are preparing to complain to the United Nations about Israel's violation of their air space earlier this week, in a story largely ignored by the national press.

The Israelis continue to maintain a spooky silence about what occurred, with the cabinet yesterday refusing to accept any questions from the press which is, in itself, a break with custom.

Syrian parliament member Muhammad Habash, who often expresses a hardline stance about Israel under the direction of the Syrian regime, said Sunday that the Israeli operation in Syria failed. "What happened was an attempted attack, but it definitely failed and that is what led to the contradictions in Israeli declarations," he said.

Habash said that if Israel had succeeded, it would have rushed to announce the operation to the world, as Israel did immediately after bombing an Iraqi nuclear reactor in 1981.

I have no idea whether what Habash claims is true or not, as so very little has been reported about this incident.

What is certain is that the remains of Israeli munitions were found near a north Syrian village, along with fuel tanks and other items indicating military activity.

What's astonishing about this story is the level to which it has been played down. One can only imagine the noise which would have emanated had this story played out the other way around, with Syrian war planes buzzing over Tel Aviv. We would have had immediate statements from Bush and Co. denouncing Syrian aggression and saying that this was a further illustration of how dangerous these regimes are to world security.

But, as the violators of another country's air space are the Israelis, the Americans ask no questions.

International law is obviously something that only perceived enemies of the US can violate. It will be interesting to watch what happens when this incident is reported to the UN. Expect an American veto of anything that is remotely critical of this Israeli violation of international law.

Click title for full article.

Tags: Israel, Syria, flyover, international law, US, AIPAC, United Nations