http://www.geostrategy-direct.com/
U.S. freezes assets of Syrian intelligence chief The United States has targeted leading members of the Syrian regime of Bashar Assad. The Bush administration has decided to block the financial assets of Syria's military intelligence chief and interior minister. Officials said both men played major roles in the Syrian military occupation of Lebanon, which ended in May 2005. Officials said the Treasury Department would freeze any assets in the U.S. of Syrian Interior Minister Ghazi Kanaan and Syrian military intelligence commander Gen. Rustom Ghazali. Ghazali has served as chief of intelligence in Lebanon. The U.S. decision also banned Americans from conducting business with Ghazali and Kanaan. Officials said despite the Syrian military withdrawal, both men continue to operate intelligence agents in Lebanon. "We are seeking democracy to take hold in Lebanon and other places in the Middle East, yet Syria continues to support violent groups and political strife," Treasury Secretary John Snow said on June 30. Officials said the administration could freeze the U.S. assets of those responsible for Syria's missile and weapons of destruction programs. They said Syrian missile entities and their directors have already been identified. The administration's move came more than a year after President Bush issued an executive order targeting those who facilitated the Syrian occupation of Lebanon. Officials said the White House delayed penalties amid opposition from the State Department and intelligence community, which asserted that Damascus has provided information on Al Qaida. Kanaan, who facilitated weapons shipments to Hizbullah, served as Syrian military intelligence in Lebanon from 1982 until 2002. He was then replaced by Ghazali. "In 2002, three rockets in a convoy allegedly escorted by Kanaan were personally delivered across the Syrian-Lebanese border to Hizbullah in Lebanon," the Treasury Department stated. In May 2001, Hizbullah pledged to seek Syrian approval for any military operation against Israel. The statement said Hizbullah also agreed to a Syrian request to continue reconnaissance operations against the Jewish state. Officials said Ghazali, seeking to intimidate the anti-Syrian opposition, threatened to assault anybody who interfered with Syrian economic interests in Lebanon. They said Ghazali controlled the Lebanese military and security services and influenced promotions and assignments. "As of mid-2003, SMI [Syrian military intelligence] did not need to maintain as large a presence among the mid-levels of each of the Lebanese security services, because Ghazali allegedly required the heads of the LAF Directorate of Intelligence, the Internal Security Forces and the Directorate of General Security to report to him on a daily, and at times hourly, basis," the Treasury Department statement said. -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
