Send Assad Packing

Well, imagine that.

Syria’s thuggish regime involved in killing people not to its liking? Yes – and now its official.

According to a report released today by the United Nations, Damascus was involved in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in February. German prosecutor Detleve Mehlis, who authored the report, concluded that there was “converging evidence” linking top Syrian and Lebanese officials to the killing.

CNN managed to obtain a copy of the internal version of the report that was distributed to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and to the Security Council, which includes some interesting details not contained in the version released to the public.

Specifically, the confidential version lists the names of those who planned the bomb attack on Hariri which killed him along with 22 others. The list includes Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s brother and brother-in-law, the former head of Syrian intelligence as well as one of Assad’s close personal friends.

The report notes that Syrian officials cooperated with the investigation only “to a limited degree” and that a number of them “tried to mislead the investigation.”

So, there you have it. Proof positive (as if any more were needed) that the authoritarian regime in Damascus has once again trampled on its neighbor, Lebanon, and used violence as a tool to eliminate its political opponents.

The Syrian regime under the Assad dynasty has long been a destabilizing force in the Middle East, from hosting terrorist organizations on its soil to helping the anti-American insurgents in Iraq. Syria has not hesitated to develop chemical weapons, and has a close and fraternal relationship with the Ayatollahs in Iran.

For far too long, the country has escaped punishment for the bloodshed and havoc that it has wreaked in the region. But in light of the UN report, one can only hope that it will now become clear to policy-makers in Washington and elsewhere that Syria is in desperate need of some regime-change.

Not only for the sake of the millions of Syrians living under Assad’s oppressive rule – but for that of the entire Middle East as well.

Poodles vs. People

Here is a sad little fact worth considering: over 600 Jewish families expelled from their homes in Gaza back in August remain scattered about in a dozen hotels around the country, with neither the government nor the media showing much interest in their fate.

The promise made by various officials prior to the withdrawal that “there is a solution for every settler” has turned into a bitter and cruel joke. So many of the evacuees still do not know where they will be making their future homes, even as they are forced to confront an unpleasant and unhelpful bureaucracy.

Many have been unable to find permanent work, since they don't know where they will be living a month from now, while others have not been allowed to access the containers holding all of their personal belongings.

And now, adding insult to injury, a hotel in Ashkelon reportedly plans to evict 30 families from Gush Katif on Sunday due to a contractual dispute with the government. And so, just two months after they were ejected from their homes, these people face the prospect of once again being forced to move, on the eve of the holiday of Sukkot.

It might be tempting to say that Gaza’s Jews were “tossed to the dogs”, but even that understates the situation.

Just last week, Environment Minister Shalom Simhon issued a press release proudly announcing his decision to allocate an additional 1 million shekels to improve animal welfare in Israel, including assistance to “animals in distress”. This comes on top of the 2.5 million shekels he has already dispensed for similar purposes.

And so, in the twisted moral calculus of our government, there is plenty of extra money to find shelter for cats or dogs, but not for the thousands of Jewish citizens made homeless by the expulsion from Gaza.

When a government starts favoring poodles over people, that's as sure a sign as any that it's time for it to go.

When Cynicism Prevails

Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz set a new national record for cynical opportunism today – and that is no small feat.

After days of reaffirming, declaring, insisting and announcing that he was staying in the Likud, Mofaz has now flip-flopped and said that he is bolting the party to join Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s Kadima.

And what exactly was it that prompted this dramatic change? According to various media reports, Sharon has promised Mofaz that he can remain Defense Minister.

Of course, it was just the other day that Mofaz was telling people: “You don’t leave your home,” when asked if he was planning to leave the Likud.

But then poll results were published in Friday’s newspapers indicating that he had little chance of winning the Likud leadership in the party’s upcoming primary – hence, his decision to jump ship.

So much for the man’s credibility.

This is a sorry day for Israeli politics – not so much because of Mofaz’ decision to switch parties, but more because of what it represents – a complete abandonment of any pretense of ideology, and a total embrace of crass political opportunism.

The Jewish people deserve better, far better, than this.