Mofaz: Israel to deliver list of demands to Syria through the US

Published April 14th, 2003 - 03:00 GMT

Israel intends to deliver a list of demands to Syria through the United States, including ousting Hizbullah fighters from southern Lebanon and expelling Palestinian groups from Damascus, Israel's defense minister said in remarks published Monday.

Israel sees an opportunity to remove the potential Syrian threat from its borders, Mofaz said in an interview, excerpts of which were published Monday in the Tel Aviv-based Maariv daily.

"We have a long list of issues we are thinking of demanding of the Syrians, and it would be best done through the Americans," Mofaz told the newspaper.

Mofaz added Israel wants Hizbullah weapons and rockets removed from southern Lebanon and the group dismantled. Israel will demand an end to Iranian aid to the resistance group, which reaches Hizbullah through Syrian ports, he added.

Israel will also demand that Syria stop harboring the Palestinian groups, Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which Mofaz said have "command centers" in Damascus from which they send orders and money to activists in the Palestinian territories. (Albawaba.com)