Epstein Secrets

sident Hosni Mubarak has only fed an Israeli squeamishness about the prospect of regime change in Damascus. As one member of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's cabinet put it, "We know Assad. We knew his father. Of course, love to have a democratic Syria as our neighbor. But do I think that's going to ha

ing the Scuds to Hezbollah, Hasan Nasrallah, the head of the group, refused to comment. During a visit to Moscow this month, Israeli media reported, Netanyahu pleaded with Russia not to sell Syria anti-ship missiles for fear that they could be transferred to Hezbollah. But his request was rebuffed. Israel

ening his grip on power; it may be that the secret police, long given too much leeway, have been taking matters into their own hands. What's more, anti-Assad elements should be careful what they wish for. Syria is ethnically and religiously diverse and, with the precipitous removal of central authority, i

d allow the completion of a sewage treatment plant in the Gaza Strip, which is partially financed with German money. So far, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has met none of the terms. Check back on SPIEGEL International on Monday for the full English- language version of SPIEGEL's cover story on Germany'

that new bedrooms and bathrooms are needed in existing structures as a simple matter of EFTA00712582 humanitarian needs. I reminded him that Mr. Netanyahu has repeatedly stated that Israel is prepared to make "painful compromises" in the interests of peace. An absolute building freeze would be such a

n affliction from infecting his county — Lebanon is increasingly getting sucked into the intra-Syrian conflict. In addition to the assassination of anti-Assad Lebanese politicians and journalists and the abductions of a score of Lebanon-based Assad opponents, Syrian security forces have regularly staged i

r center of unrest; it was shelled by the Syrian Navy in mid-August. Aleppo, Syria's second-largest city has also seen significant demonstrations. If anti-Assad insurgents take up arms, the chemical sites, as symbols of regime's authority, could become strategic targets. And, if mass defections occur from the

ent effect. A preemptive Israeli military strike to destroy the weapons does not appear technically feasible: Even if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were ready to change the status quo, Assad is believed to have stored bulk chemical agents and filled (or quickly filled) shells and bombs in undergr