Amidst uncertainty on the Syrian front, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says he "has much respect" for Syrian dictator Assad, and is willing to make peace without pre-conditions.  "Making peace with Syria" is generally understood to mean Israel's giving up the strategic Golan Heights, from which Syria constantly attacked Israeli towns prior to the Six Day War in 1967.

"If the conditions become ripe," Olmert told reporters Monday night, "Israel would be willing to make peace with Syria without ultimative demands... I have a lot of respect for the president of Syria, Bashar Assad, and we have no reason to rule out dialogue with Syria."

He refused to answer a question about the alleged Israeli air attack in north-eastern Syria of two weeks ago, and this was in fact the first time he has spoken publicly about Syria since that incident.  Israel has neither denied or confirmed the attack.

President Shimon Peres, speaking Tuesday to foreign reporters, backed up Olmert and said, "The recent tensions between ourselves and Syria have ended... We are willing to talk directly with Syria about peace."

Olmert Under Fire

Politicians on both left and right attacked the Prime Minister for his remarks, or lack thereof.  MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union) said, "It is quite strange that Israel's Prime Minister 'greatly respects' the man whom most Arab leaders call, behind his back, an ahabal [roughly translated as 'dumb jerk' - ed.]."

More to the point, Eldad accused Olmert of wishing to sell off Israeli assets - first Judea and Samaria, and now the Golan - in order to guarantee his own political survival.

MK Zevulun Orlev (National Religious Party) said, "It is sad to see that Olmert agrees with Meretz MK Zahava Gal'on, that we should ignore the fact that Syria is a terror state in one line with Iran and Hizbullah, and be willing to embrace Assad with no pre-conditions."

MK Gal'on actually attacked Olmert from the left, demanding that he provide a full report on the alleged incident in Syria to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.  In a letter to Attorney General Menachem Mazuz, Gal'on asked him to order Olmert to "fulfill his legal obligation to report on any unusual IDF activity to the Committee or to one of its sub-committees.  According to law and basic democratic principles, it is inconceivable that there should not be Knesset supervision over IDF activities beyond our borders - if not in advance, then at least retroactively."

The head of Gal'on's party, MK Yossi Beilin, does not agree with her demand. 

What Did Israel Attack?

Foreign sources have reported various versions of what actually occurred in northeastern Syria nearly two weeks ago.  The Saudi-British Al-Hayat paper reported in the name of NATO sources that Israel fired four rockets at rocket-production plants staffed by Iranians and North Koreans.  It is not clear whether the plant was a nuclear one, and the paper reports that Israel's intention was not to destroy the installation, but rather to let Syria know that Israel knows of the plant and can reach anywhere in Syria.

FoxNews and the Washington Post have reported that the US has evidence that North Korea sold to Syria, just last month, a nuclear installation or is otherwise cooperating with Syria to this end.  The New York Times, too, reported that Israel has evidence indicating that North Korea provided Syria with nuclear materials.

Local press circles say that none of the foreign reports are correct, and that Israel executed a major strike against Syria which inflicted heavy losses.

Arab-affairs expert Dr. Guy Bechor of the Interdisciplinary Institute of Herzliya writes that Syria has not emerged happily from the entire incident.  For one thing, he explains, the fact that Syria is being linked with North Korea, "the most leprous country in the world today," does not bode well for its reputation.  North Korea is not even accepted in the Arab world, thus that Syria has removed itself from the Arab consensus.

In addition, Bechor writes, "By publicizing the incident, Syria has caused the world to ask what it might be hiding in its territory.  This is added to the suspicions that Syria was behind the murder of Lebanese President Rafik Al-Hariri. "If not for the much-touted attack over Syria," Bechor concludes, "that abruptly flooded the world with the Syrian-nuclear-military issue, it is doubtful whether Syria's nuclear intentions would be being scrutinized by the US and others as is happening now."

On the other hand, Bechor and other analysts agree, news of the attack has strengthened Israel's deterrence power.

North Korea, meanwhile, has denied helping Syria in nuclear matters.