Epstein Secrets

egime. Instead, demonstrations spread to more Syrian cities and villages, the rallying point being lifting the military siege on the city of Daraa. Damascus accuses Hariri supporters, Khaddam's mercenaries, Muslim Brothers, Salafists, al-Qaida terrorists, and sleeper cells planted by the former Egyptian

ters' demands would betray weakness on the part of the regime and only elicit more demands. Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa and presidential adviser Bouthaina Shaaban—who initially divulged to the public the President's intention to undertake serious reforms—have fallen silent. Last week, armed units were deploye

tings with congressional delegations and journalists, this theory supposes that the dictator is willing to break with the Hamas leaders he hosts in Damascus; that he will see that it is in his interest to negotiate a peace agreement with Israel; and that, his record to date notwithstanding, he truly want

ria less than two month ago. Assad has deliberately avoided making any public pronouncements so far, leaving those mostly to his pro-reform adviser Bouthaina Shaaban. She said last week that Assad would repeal Syria's emergency law, end the Baath Party's monopoly on power, reform the judiciary and combat the corr

replaces the old idea of dynasty. The regime of the Al-Assads does not believe in freedom of information. An American journalist friend of mine, in Damascus during the regime of the father, Hafez, witnessed a failed attempt to assassinate that president, and he accordingly filed a report to his wire ser

member. A timeline of opposition in Syria bulges with religious contention and brutal repression, but not with female heroes. The government uses Bouthaina Shaaban, a British- educated scholar of Arab women and literature, to reach out to old oppositionists while young ones are disinclined to talk. Who will pr