Syria benefits from the Israeli air strike

The Kuwaiti daily al-Anbaa said on Friday that the impressions prevailed by certain sides that the Israeli air strike against a Syrian position in Lebanon had undermined the dignity of the Syrian army, is a wrong impression.

In its Friday's issue analysis the paper added that Syria seems to be the benefiting side from this strike which has restored her the consideration as a confrontation state and highlighted the regional dimensions in the Syrian military presence in Lebanon. A presence which is connected to the Arab- Israeli conflict and ensured for Syria a campaign of solidarity and sympathy from the Arab states, equal to what the Palestinians have got after their costing Intifada.

The paper continued that after this Israeli strike Syria has concentrated on two main points. The first is knowing the reality of the American position and whether this Israeli strike was carried out at the knowledge of the American side and the second is to study the position that should be taken and the way to repel this provocative Israeli aggression.

The paper defined two options before Syria. The first is to give the green light to Hizbullah to bombard Shebaa farms and the Israeli depth and the second is to maintain self- control and not to reciprocate the Israeli strike.

The paper noted that there are vast margins for Syria to maintain a political reply and to take forms in mainly three ways. The first is to raise the level of co-ordination with Lebanon, closing all gaps, the second to create a Palestinian case and to lay the foundation stone for this case during the visit of Arafat to Damascus and the third is to raise the level of contacts with the Arab states especially with Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

The paper continued all these reveal that Syria was not embarrassed and was never put in the bottleneck of answering back the raid.