All U.S. Troops Home Now
• Oppose the Lawless U.S. Military Attack on Syria!
• Syria Sends Letter to UN, Calling for It to Assume Responsibility Toward U.S. Aggression
• Arab and Foreign Countries Continue Condemnation of U.S. Aggression on Syria
• News Items on U.S. Attack
Obama Supports Expanded Aggression
Oppose the Lawless U.S. Military Attack on Syria!
The U.S. military launched a raid inside the sovereign state of Syria October 26, killing a farmer and his four sons, a man and his wife and one other adult male. Several others in the area were injured by U.S. gunfire. The adult male victims from the rural Abu Kamal district of Syria were apparently engaged in constructing a building when attacked by four U.S. military helicopters and soldiers. The U.S. attackers flew from a U.S. military base inside occupied Iraq to carry out their murderous mission within Syria. The U.S. imperialists have also established numerous military bases inside occupied Afghanistan from which they regularly launch raids inside neighboring Pakistan. This aggressive pattern has now been escalated into an open attack on Syria from occupied Iraq.
At the time, which was prior to the elections, Barack Obama remained silent about these attacks on a sovereign nation and on Syria's demand to the United Nations to hold the U.S. responsible for its aggression. Since election, Obama has persisted in saying the aggression in Afghanistan and on the border with Pakistan must be stepped up, and, as he put it in his victory speech, any "who would tear the world down: We will defeat you." Clearly it is U.S. imperialism and its champion Obama that is deciding who is and is not "tearing the world down," and subject to U.S. aggression.
The U.S. is the greatest international criminal and source of anarchy, chaos and instability in the world using more than seven hundred military bases in 130 foreign countries, with more than half a million soldiers. Its spy planes, “black-ops” and naval battle groups are used to threaten other peoples. Covert military and other operations within sovereign countries, like Iran, are conducted and now increasingly the U.S. carries out its military aggression overtly. These attacks and covert interference in the affairs of sovereign countries form part of the current chaotic economic, political and military climate in which the peoples of the world are suffering. No economic or political problem can be resolved with certainty as long as the U.S. military can roam the world with lawless impunity threatening and attacking sovereign states and disrupting their civil, economic and political affairs.
Countries large and small are unable to establish any semblance of stability in their internal political affairs as the U.S. military constantly bribes and coerces treacherous elements to engage in actions to disrupt political life and even engage in acts leading to reactionary civil war.
Countries throughout the world are greatly worried by the U.S. military and its total disregard of international law and established civilized norms. Many countries feel compelled by U.S. military threats and constant aggression to divert precious resources into military spending to defend their sovereignty and right to be. Lawless U.S. military activity has become a major objective consideration for the worldwide arms trade, which has greatly weakened economies everywhere and is a factor in the current economic crisis.
Voice of Revolution denounces the U.S. attacks on Syria and all the threats, covert actions, aggression and occupations carried out worldwide. With the election of a new president, it is urgent to step up the anti-war struggle of the people and carry forward the demand for All U.S. Troops Home Now!
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Syrian Arab News Agency, October 28, 2008
DAMASCUS — Syrian Arab Republic on Tuesday sent a letter to the United Nation’s (UN) Secretary General and the Head of Security Council on the act of aggression carried out by the U.S. inside Syrian lands on the 26th of October that claimed the lives of 8 innocent citizens. The letter stated that on 26th October, at 16.45, four U.S. helicopters coming from Iraq violated the Syrian airspaces in al-Boukamal area (al-Sukariah Farm) targeting a civilian building and firing at workers inside the building, leading to the killing of 8 citizens.
The martyred citizens were identified as Daoud Mohammad al-Abdullah and his 4 sons, Ahmad Khalefa, Ali Abbas and his wife in addition to wounding another citizen. Later, the U.S. helicopters returned to Iraq.
Syria condemns this act of aggression perpetrated by the U.S. occupation forces. This act of aggression represents a dangerous violation of Syrian sovereignty and the UN principles and conventions.
Syria, at the same time, calls on the Iraqi government to investigate the reasons for this aggression and to assume its responsibilities to prevent having its lands used as a launching-pad in violation of the Arab League convention. “In this regard, we [note] that this unjustified act of aggression comes at a time when the Iraqi and U.S. sides recognize Syria’s efforts to preserve Iraq security and prevent any illegal infiltrations into its territories,” the letter added. It said that this act of aggression perpetrated by the U.S. forces against Syrian civilians indicates the U.S. administration’s determination to continue its policies that brought the region nothing but killing and destruction.
The letter concluded by saying that the Syrian Government expects the Security Council and UN member countries to assume responsibility to prevent a reoccurrence of such a dangerous violation and hold the aggressor responsible for killing innocent Syrian citizens [and] to keep security and stability in the Middle East.
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Arab and Foreign Countries Continue Condemnation of U.S. Aggression on Syria
On October 28, Arab and international countries, political figures and parties continued condemnation of the U.S. aggression on the al-BouKamal area that claimed the lives of 8 Syrian civilians.
The National Leadership of al-Ba’ath Arab Socialist Party in Damascus strongly condemned this act of aggression, saying “this act is considered as a flagrant violation of international laws and one form of the state-organized terrorism practiced by the U.S. administration on the Arab region in the service of its colonial project ‘the greater Middle East’ and the Zionist project in the region. “This aggression comes in the framework of executing the U.S. threats announced by American military officers aiming at imposing the security agreement on Iraq and posing a threat to the neighboring countries,” the party leadership said in a statement.
France renewed its stance vis-à-vis the U.S. aggression on al-BouKamal, expressing concern over this aggression and calling for the respect for countries’ sovereignty. “For France, it is not possible to consider operations that lead to the killing of civilians and children as successful we expressed regret over the killing of civilians, among them children,” Eric Chevallier, France Foreign Ministry Spokesman said in a statement.
In Abu Dhabi, the UAE condemned this aggression, saying “this aggression represents a flagrant violation of international legitimacy and Syrian national sovereignty.” “UAE stresses its deep concern over repercussions of this aggression on regional peace,” UAE Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Jordan also denounced this act, saying “it is a violation of Syrian sovereignty on its lands.” The official spokesman of Jordanian Government expressed his country’s deep concern over the U.S. aggression inside the Syrian territories and regret over targeting innocent civilians.
In Sana’a, the Yemeni Parliament also condemned the U.S. aggression on the Syrian lands.” This aggression is a dangerous act against borders of a sovereign country it contradicts international norms and laws,” a statement by the Yemeni Parliament said.
Sudan strongly condemned the U.S. aggression, saying “it is a violation of the UN conventions.” A statement by Sudanese Foreign Ministry expressed solidarity and sympathy with Syria and condolences to the families of martyrs.
In Tehran, Iranian Foreign Minister Manuchehre Mottaki condemned the U.S. aggression on Syria, an ugly massacre against defenseless civilians in al-BouKamal. “U.S. President Bush administration seeks, during its last days, to keep its record full of aggression and blood-shedding in addition to destabilizing security and stability in the region through aggressions on Syria and Pakistan,” Mottaki said during a press conference with former Lebanese President Emile Lahoud.
Meanwhile, China condemned the U.S. aggression that led to the killing of civilians. “China opposes any act that could harm sovereignty and territorial integrity of other countries,” a spokeswoman of the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
In Beirut, Lebanese Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh underlined that the U.S. aggression has [created] a violation of the international human law and an offense to peace in the region. “The aggression reflects the desire of U.S. officials to violate stability and security as well as escalating tension in the region,” Salloukh told al-Jazeera TV in an interview.
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News Items on U.S. Attack
Foreign Ministry Summons U.S. Charge d’Affaires in Damascus, Holds U.S. Administration Responsible for the Dangerous Aggression in Abu Kamal
Syrian Arab News Agency, October 26, 2008
DAMASCUS — An official source on Sunday announced that four U.S. helicopters coming from Iraq violated the Syrian airspaces over Abu Kamal area (al-Sukkariah Farm) targeting a civilian building, killing eight citizens.
The source identified the civilians killed in the aggression as Daoud Mohammad al-Abdullah and his four sons, in addition to Ahmad Khalifa, Ali Abbas Al-Hassan and his wife. Another citizen was also wounded, the source added. Later, the U.S. helicopters flew back to the Iraqi airspace.
Syria, while condemning this act of aggression, holds the U.S. forces responsible for this aggression and all of its repercussions, calls on the Iraqi government to shoulder its responsibilities and open an immediate investigation into this dangerous violation and prevent using the Iraqi territories for launching aggression on Syria.
The Deputy Foreign Minister summoned the Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Damascus, informing her of Syria’s protest and condemnation of this dangerous aggression, holding the U.S. administration full responsibility for it. The Iraqi Chargé d’Affaires has also been summoned to the Foreign Ministry for the same purpose.
Earlier, a media source said that four U.S. military helicopters had violated the Syrian airspace five miles over al-Sukkariah Farm, in Abu Kamal area at 4.45pm Sunday.
The U.S. helicopters launched an aggression on a civilian building under construction and opened fire at the workers inside the building, killing eight civilians, including the wife of the building guard, and wounding another. The helicopters then left towards the Iraqi territories.
The U.S. Aggression Is a Terrorist Act, Minister al-Moallem Says
Syrian Arab News Agency, October 27, 2008
DAMASCUS — Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem on Monday underlined that the U.S. has launched a terrorist act on al-BouKamal area killing innocent civilians, holding the U.S. Administration responsible for this aggression.
During a press conference held following a meeting with his British counterpart David Miliband in London, Minister al-Moallem called the U.S. officials to investigate into this act, announce the results and offer interpretations about the reasons of launching such aggressive act.
He also called on the Iraqi government to investigate this issue and not allow the U.S. to use Iraqi lands to launch aggression on Syria.
“There is a question on whether this aggressive act is a beginning of the security agreement between the U.S. and the Iraqi government,” the Minister said.
On the stance of the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires in Damascus, the Minister said “ the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires said she has no information and will convey what she has and return to us, expressing regret of the killing of civilians.”
He refuted the U.S. allegations of the existence of terrorist activities for al-Qaeda along the Syrian borders, saying “they know well that Syria stands against al-Qaeda and condemns its acts against the Iraqi people, and they know well that we do our best to control borders with Iraq.”
Al-Moallem added that the Bush Administration’s record is full of lies and fabrications since it went to the Security Council under the pretext of Iraq possession of weapons of mass destruction.
On the statements of the Iraqi government spokesman, al-Moallem expressed astonishment at such statements that justify the terrorist aggression on Syrian unarmed civilians.
As for his talks with his British counterpart, al-Moallem expressed relief of the outcomes of talks, describing them as constructive and useful, saying “I explained to Minister Miliband the conditions of the U.S. aggression on the Syrian lands as well as we held talks on relations between Syria and the European Union (EU) and issues that lead to stability in the region.”
Minister al-Moallem underlined that if the purpose of the U.S. aggression was to obstruct Syria’s relations with Europe, Britain and France, the outcomes of my talks with the British Foreign Secretary would make this purpose a failure.
He added that the EU latest openness to Syria reflects awareness of EU leaders of Syria’s central and important role in the region.
Minister al-Moallem expressed hope the coming U.S. presidential elections will help learn about mistakes committed by the Administration of President George Bush.
Arab League and Arab Security Council Condemn U.S. Attack
Syrian Arab News Agency, October 27, 2008
CAIRO — Arab League General Secretariat has condemned the U.S. gunship attack on Bou-Kamal in northeastern Syria that claimed the lives of innocent civilians. In a statement issued today, the Arab League underlined that such a violation will not help stability in the region and opens the door in front of new tension in the region and destroys the credibility of the move toward peace and stability in Iraq and its neighbors.
The statement stressed solidarity with Syria in her right to defend her territories and protect her people.
For its part the Security Council and Arab Peace at the Arab League which is headed by Saudi Arabia discussed the U.S. aggression and Arab League Secretary General, Amre Mousa issued a strongly worded statement condemning the U.S. dangerous act against Syrian civilians and innocents.The meeting of the council was attended representatives of Syria, Algeria, Djibouti, Sudan, Egypt, Yemen, Oman, and Somalia.
Hamas Expresses Solidarity with Syria after U.S. Assault on Its Citizens
Palestinian Information Center, October 27, 2008
GAZA — The Hamas Movement on Sunday expressed its full solidarity with the Syrian leadership and people against the oppressive U.S. aggression on Syria that claimed the lives of eight civilians and led to the injury of 14 others in the Abu Kamal city.
In an exclusive statement to the Palestinian Information Center (PIC), Dr. Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas spokesman, said that his Movement condemns the American assault on the Syrian sovereignty as one of the many forms of the American arrogance.
The official Syrian TV reported Sunday evening that a number of U.S. military helicopters bombed an area near the border city of Abu Kamal in the Deir Al-Zour province which resulted in the death of many Syrian civilians.
Syrian eyewitnesses said that the U.S. aerial attack targeted a civilian house in the area claiming the lives of a father and four of his sons in addition to two workers, adding that an airdrop of U.S. soldiers took place in the area.
The BBC reporter in Damascus quoted Syrian official sources as saying that around 16:45 local time, four U.S. helicopters attacked a civilian building under construction and opened fire on workers inside including the wife of the building guard.
In an exclusive statement to the PIC, Taher Al-Nunu, the spokesman for the Palestinian government in Gaza, strongly denounced the American assault on Syria, saying the U.S. violated all norms and international agreements when it attacked innocent people in Syria.
The spokesman called on the Arab and Islamic states to assume their responsibilities towards this flagrant attack on the sovereignty of a fraternal country.
Syria Says Raid Is ‘Terrorist’ Act
Al Jazeera, October 27, 2008 (excerpts)
The Syrian foreign minister has described a deadly raid on a village near the border with Iraq, allegedly carried out by the U.S., as a planned act of “terrorist aggression.” Speaking in London on Monday, Walid Muallem also raised questions about how a pact between the U.S. and Iraq over troop deployment next year could impact on neighboring countries.Muallem said the eight people killed in Sunday’s helicopter attack in the border village of Sukariya were civilians.
“All of them were unarmed and they are on the Syrian territories,” he said. “This killing of civilians in international law means a terrorist aggression. The Americans do it in the daylight, this means it is not a mistake it is by determination, by planned determination.” Muallem also said that Syria would be holding the U.S. responsible and that the government needed to investigate and report back to them with an explanation as to why the raid had been carried out.
“Also, the question arises here: Is this the production of the agreement between the administration and Iraq, the defensive agreement, where many Iraqis are saying that the sovereignty of Iraq is at stake and the American will use the Iraqi’s territories to launch aggression against neighboring countries? These are question marks,” he said.
The families of those killed in the raid on Sukariya, which lies close to the town of Abu Kamal, buried their loved ones on Monday.
Syrian state television said four U.S. military helicopters had been involved in Sunday’s raid on the village. “Four American helicopters violated Syrian airspace around 4:45pm local time [13:45 GMT] on Sunday,” state television reported. Two of the helicopters landed and dropped off eight U.S. soldiers, who then entered a house, Syrian media reported.
“American soldiers ... attacked a civilian building under construction and fired at workmen inside, causing eight deaths,” state television said. The government said that those killed were workers. Akram Hameed, a man in his 40s who said he was injured in the attack while fishing in the Euphrates river, told Syrian television he saw four helicopters coming from the border area under a heavy blanket of fire.
“One of the helicopters landed in an agricultural area and eight members disembarked,” Hameed said. “The firing lasted about 15 minutes and when I tried to leave the area on my motorcycle, I was hit by a bullet in the right arm [from] about 20 meters (22 yards) away.”
Syrian television showed what it said was the injured wife of the building’s guard, in bed in hospital with a tube in her nose, saying that two helicopters landed and two remained in the air during the attack. After news of Sunday’s attack emerged, the Syrian government summoned the senior U.S. and Iraqi envoys to Damascus to protest against the raid, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported.
A Syrian government statement said: “Syria condemns this aggression and holds the American forces responsible for this aggression and all its repercussions.” The statement also called for the Iraqi government to launch an investigation into the attack.
Reem Haddad, the Syrian information ministry spokesperson, says that the raid breached a recent accord between Iraq and the U.S. “This is a flagrant violation of the new [security] agreement between Iraq and the U.S.,” she told Al Jazeera. “One of the points of that agreement is that they do not attack bordering countries.”
Hoda Abdel Hamid, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil, said the alleged U.S. raid seemed to be in contradiction to comments by U.S. officials that Syria had improved its border security. “What is quite puzzling for many people here is that the Americans had actually praised the role of Syria over the last year,” she said.
“Earlier this year, I had conversations with General David Petraeus [then commander of U.S. forces in Iraq] and Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq; they both said that Damascus had made [security] efforts at its main airport and along the Syria-Iraq border, and that the flow of fighters coming into Iraq had diminished considerably over the previous year.
“They both said the number of people infiltrating Iraq from Syria had dropped by 50 per cent [in the last year]. Actually, Petraeus told me that it was impossible for any country to fully control its borders, specifically when it is in a porous desert area.”
Syria Accuses America of ‘Terrorist Aggression’
The Independent, October 28, 2008 (excerpts)
The Syrian foreign minister, Walid al-Moualem said the raid had killed eight civilians and was an act of “criminal and terrorist aggression.” Speaking at a news conference in London, he warned that Damascus would defend itself against any such future attack. Sunday’s raid, 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the Iraqi border, took place in daylight and therefore was “not a mistake,” he said.
The rare attack into Syria marks an unexpected expansion of the war in Iraq and comes as the level of fighting drops to its lowest level for four years. “We are taking matters into our own hands,” said a U.S. officer in Washington.
Syria said that four U.S. helicopters had carried out the raid on a construction site near the Syrian village of Sukkariyeh, 10 kilometers from the Iraq border. Eight men had been killed and two wounded, local officials said. TV images showed a small fenced farm and a truck riddled with bullet holes. There was also a building site and a tent with food and blankets. Spent bullets were scattered around.
In Sukkariyeh, a villager named Jumad Ahmad al-Hamad said he had seen four helicopters, two of which landed. “Shooting then started and rang out for 10 minutes.” When the helicopters had left, he and other villagers had gone to the site and found the bodies of his uncle, Dawoud al-Hamad, and four of his uncle’s sons.
The area that came under attack is near the Syrian border crossing of Abu Kamal. It is on the Euphrates river and the main road from Iraq to Syria. It is not clear why the U.S. military decided to launch an attack on Syrian territory at this moment.
Villagers in Sukkariyeh buried their dead yesterday, chanting anti-American slogans and carrying banners reading: “Down with Bush and the American enemy.”
President Bush assented to carrying the war against America’s enemies in the Middle East by backing covert cross-border operations in a presidential finding earlier this year. This secret directive, for which Congress made an outlay of $300m, promised backing for covert attacks by non-U.S. forces from Lebanon to Afghanistan.
The timing of the Sukkariyeh raid is unexpected as Syria has been more co-operative with the U.S. and its allies. In the early stages of the war in Iraq, the Syrian government believed that if the U.S. succeeded in establishing its hegemony in Baghdad, it would then try to remove the anti-American governments in Syria and Iran. It also felt that the U.S. and its allies were undermining its position in Lebanon.
Syria blamed a bomb attack in Damascus earlier this year on Iraq, saying that the GMC truck containing the explosives had crossed the border from Iraq into Syria. All Syrian personnel at border posts were dismissed for failing to detect the bomb.
The U.S. is likely to pay a heavy political price for the cross-border raids in terms of Syrian and Pakistani anger, but government retaliation is not likely in either case. A raid into Iran would be different; the Iranians have retaliated swiftly for attacks on their personnel in Iraq. The raid may also intensify Iranian hostility to the Iraqi-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement. “It will be used against the agreement and will give the Iranians reason to increase their interference against [it],” said the Iraqi political veteran Mahmoud Othman. “The neighboring countries now have good reason to be concerned about the U.S. presence in Iraq.”
Syria’s Fury Is Justified — Who Can Blame Damascus for Getting Cozy with Moscow?
Excerpts from Comment in Yahoo News
The U.S. has once again “targeted foreign fighters” as part of its so-called war on terror. But these “fighters” were all Syrian civilians, including four youngsters. Another five individuals have been hospitalized after being shot by U.S. Special Forces. Washington has admitted perpetrating this tragic incident but insists the victims were terrorists just as it does when its fighter jets illegally cross the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and end up wiping out entire families. Syria describes the adult victims as construction workers.
Even the pro-American Afghan leader Hamid Karzai is fed up with the Pentagon’s trigger-happy policies that exact such a terrible toll on innocent civilian life. The problem is there is no international oversight on U.S. military activities. There is no investigation into these murders and the world is expected to take every utterance from the U.S. military as gospel.
Contrast this with the way Syria was taken to task for its alleged (and as yet unproven) involvement in the assassination of pro-Western Lebanese politicians and journalists. Just imagine the outcry and repercussions if the shoe was on the other foot and Syrian jets invaded Iraq airspace to take out U.S. targets. Worse, the U.S. is unrepentant. The Associated Press quotes a U.S. official saying his country is “taking matters into our own hands” due to Syria’s lack of cooperation — a statement that certainly does not bode well for the future and illustrates Washington’s steadfast belief in its own exceptionalism.
No other country barring Israel would be allowed to get away with such brutal behavior. Last year, if you recall, Israel bombed a Syrian military site saying it was destined to be a nuclear reactor. Syria vehemently denied this claim and the director-general of the international nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, condemned the attack saying “the unilateral use of force by Israel” undermines “the due process of verification that is at the heart of the nonproliferation regime.”
By anyone’s moral or legal reckoning, the attack on a Syrian farm was a crime against humanity and should not be tolerated by either Syria or the international community bearing in mind that although Syrian-U.S. relations are frosty the two countries are not at war.
Moreover it is not strategically helpful coming at a time when Washington is trying to prize the Syrians out of Iran’s arms and Israel is seeking a peace deal in exchange for return of the Golan Heights. In this case, who can blame Damascus for getting cozy with Russia, which is constructing permanent naval bases in two Syrian ports? Moscow is also thought to be supplying Syria with advanced weaponry and sophisticated air-defense systems as well as the nuclear-capable 200 km range Iskander missiles, set to greatly erode Israel’s regional military superiority.
Syria fell out of favor with Washington and its Western allies in 2003 when President Bashar Assad railed at the invasion of Iraq, which he considered was not mandated by UN Security Council resolutions. In fact, he was quite right as former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan later admitted. Yet, being right did not prevent Syria from being treated as a rogue nation from then on. It had to be punished for not towing the line. And in 2003, the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passed the Syrian Accountability Act that imposed sanctions on Damascus for its support of “terrorists and nuclear proliferation activities.”
The bloody incursion into Syria’s territory was an outrage. There is absolutely no excuse for it and in a world without double standards the U.S. should be made to pay for its arrogance.
U.S. Officials Confirm Commando Raid on Syria
New York Times, October 27, 2008 (excerpts)
WASHINGTON — A raid into Syria on Sunday was carried out by American Special Operations forces, American officials said Monday. The helicopter-borne attack into Syria was by far the boldest by American commandos in the five years since the United States invaded Iraq and began to condemn Syria’s role in stoking the Iraqi insurgency. The timing was startling, not least because American officials praised Syria in recent months for its efforts to halt traffic across the border.
But in justifying the attack, American officials said the Bush administration was determined to operate under an expansive definition of self-defense that provided a rationale for strikes on militant targets in sovereign nations without those countries’ consent. Together with a similar American commando raid into Pakistan more than seven weeks ago, the operation on Sunday appeared to reflect an intensifying effort by the Bush administration to find a way during its waning months to attack militants even beyond the borders of Iraq and Afghanistan, where the United States is at war.
Administration officials declined to say whether the emerging application of self-defense could lead to strikes against camps inside Iran. American officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the secrecy of the raid said the mission had been mounted rapidly over the weekend on orders from the Central Intelligence Agency. About two dozen American commandos in specially equipped Black Hawk helicopters swooped into the village of Sukkariyah, near the Iraqi border, just before 5 p.m., the officials said.
Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the United States has attacked terrorism suspects in the ungoverned spaces of countries like Yemen and Somalia. But administration officials said Monday that the strikes in Pakistan and Syria were carried out on the basis of a legal argument that has been refined in recent months to justify strikes by troops and by rockets on militants in countries with which the United States is not at war.
The justification is different from the concept of pre-emption the administration articulated immediately after the Sept. 11 attacks, and which was used as the rationale for the invasion of Iraq. While pre-emption was used to justify attacks against governments and their armies, the self-defense argument would justify attacks on insurgents operating on foreign soil that threatened the forces, allies or interests of the United States.
Administration officials pointed Monday to a passage in President Bush’s speech to the United Nations General Assembly last month as the clearest articulation of this position to date. “As sovereign states, we have an obligation to govern responsibly, and solve problems before they spill across borders,” Mr. Bush said. “We have an obligation to prevent our territory from being used as a sanctuary for terrorism and proliferation and human trafficking and organized crime.”
In seeking to carry out cross-border missions inside Pakistan and now in Syria, the United States government is expected to make the case that these operations will help protect the lives of American troops. It is not clear how far-reaching the White House may be in seeking to apply the rationale, but several senior American officials expressed hope that it would be embraced by the next president as well.
The American military has on occasion mounted attacks on Syrian soil to support its military operations in Iraq, but they mostly have been cross-border missile strikes, and there was a rare case of ground forces briefly crossing the frontier in hot pursuit of insurgents.
In seeking support in international law for its actions, the Bush administration is joining a list of nations that have cited Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, which enshrines the right of individual or collective self-defense to all member states. Over the years, a growing body of legal argument has made the case that this right of self-defense allows a nation to take military action on the territory of another sovereign nation that is unable or unwilling to take measures on its own to halt the threat.
This argument was emphasized when the Israeli military mounted a hostage-rescue mission at Entebbe airport in Uganda in 1976, and similar arguments have been made to defend actions by the Colombian military against the FARC guerrillas seeking haven in neighboring countries, and Turkish troops pursuing Kurdish militants in their sanctuaries in northern Iraq.
Israel also made this argument when, in September last year, its warplanes attacked what Israel said was a nuclear reactor in Syria that was nearing operational capability.
The Iraqi government found itself in an awkward position on Monday as it sought at once to remain on friendly terms with Syria, which is a neighbor and now home to more than a million Iraqi refugees, but also to bolster the United States in going after people believed to be fomenting antigovernment unrest in Iraq.
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