Epstein Secrets

at J. P. Morgan. On the other hand, he is a child of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the cold war. Contrary to American interests, he firmly believes Lebanon should be within Syria's sphere of influence, and he is a member of a minority Islamic sect, the Alawites, that has had a chokehold on power in Syr

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

o long, as the case with Colonel Muammar Gaddafi in Libya or Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Additionally his positions vis-a-vis Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, two topics that are dear to the hearts of grassroots Syrians, have given him a protective shield that other Arab leaders do not

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 SONY_GM_00078426 JPM-SDNY-00001553 EFTA_

ilt Submarines Article 2. The Moscow Times Russia's Role in the Houla Massacre Alexander Shumilin Article 3. The Daily Star When Syria sneezes Lebanon gets the flu Murhaf Jouejati Article 4. The Wall Street Journal A Settlement Freeze Can Advance Israeli-Palestinian Peace Alan M. Dershowitz Ar

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

he fall of Syria would leave Hezbollah - which is highly dependent on the current Syrian regime and is in large part an extension of Syrian policy in Lebanon - wholly dependent on Iran. And Iran without its Syrian ally is very far away from Hezbollah. Like Tehran, Hezbollah thus also wants al Assad to surv

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