JEDDAH, 23 October 2005 – Reactions were mixed here on the Mehlis report that was released by the United Nations on Friday. The report implicated high Syrian and Lebanese officials in the murder of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Some reacted saying that they did not expect anything but a report that would be of help to the Americans by involving Syria in the case, some found the report shocking, while the majority of the Saudis, along with many Arabs, believe that America wants to isolate Syria politically.
Abu Adnan, a government worker, said: “America wants to harm Syria politically and to isolate that country so that Israel could benefit. Israel, a cancer in the region, is behind the assassination of Hariri, not Syria. If there is a crisis in the region, do not try to look for who is behind it, but find out who would benefit from it and then you will know who did it. If the report has solid proof that Syria is behind it, then why do they not come out in the open and show it. That report is fake, similar to many reports issued by America.”
Khaled M., a Saudi university student said: “It was a great loss (Hariri's death) because Hariri was helping in Lebanon's development. The report came as shock to me because I did not want Syria to be implicated. There are enough crises in the Arab world and we do not want another one. If Syrian and Lebanese officials are behind the assassination then they should be punished. They should name the officials and stop involving the country as a whole.”
Salman Ahmad, a Saudi businessman, said: “This is a play orchestrated by the Americans to attack Syria. Prior to this America had launched a war against Iraq claiming the Iraqis had weapons of mass destruction. But their and intelligence and reports turned out to be totally false. Till now they have not been able to find any weapons of mass destruction. They and the British have been proven liars. Now they are trying to involve the Syrians with false accusations. America is arrogant and will not listen to anybody. The world is forced to listen to them even if they know that they were wrong.”
B.A., a bank employee, said: “I think both the US and the British are trying to create a fissure between Lebanon and Syria and provoking a clash. Both Syria and Lebanon should be allowed to deal with this issue and work it out together with no outside (Western) involvement. I think the US should take care of the Katarina victims and should be more concerned about Wilma and the other issues concerning Americans at home.”
Yaser Al-Otaibi, a university student, said: “This move by the UN is nothing but a prelude to imposing an economic sanction on Syria. It’s a Western countries' bid to change the leadership in Syria and abuse its resources."
Bander Al-Sudais, a businessman, said: “This report will cause more trouble in an already troubled area. The US is already suffering with their decision to invade Iraq, and if they don't need another headache in the region. Nobody can predict what will happen next when the UN moves forward with this report. If the UN is really behind the report, and not the US and its allies, then Syria should show cooperation."
