Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live Sunday
Powell to Travel to Beirut Tomorrow
Aired April 14, 2002 - 15:08 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Tomorrow, from Ramallah to Tel Aviv and to Beirut Secretary Powell will make a stop there. There has been increasing concern about that border situation between northern Israel and southern Lebanon. To our Beirut bureau chief Brent Sadler who is watching the front up there. Brent, good evening.
BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening Bill. By adding unplanned stops in Beirut and Damascus to a hectic Middle East run of shuttle diplomacy, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell is stepping into another military quagmire along the Lebanese Israeli border. This is where Hezbollah guerrillas have been attacking Israeli troops occupying Arab land at the foot of the Golan Heights called the Shebaa Farms. Cross border clashes like these have been going on over the past two weeks or so, and they've coincided with Israel's military offensive against the Palestinians, which began 17 days ago and these clashes have gotten worse by the day.
Hard-line Palestinian groups based in Lebanon with offices in Damascus have also launched sporadic attacks aimed at Israel's northern border settlement. Lebanon has tried to stop the Palestinians, making arrests and capturing weapons, but both Lebanon and Syria officially support Hezbollah's attacks on Israeli troops occupying what they say is Lebanese territory in those Golan Heights. Israel, as we've seen has hit back repeatedly using heavy artillery on warplanes. They bomb suspected guerrilla hideout in south Lebanon.
But it is a cycle of violence which has come precariously close to exploding into an all out conflicts that risk dragging not only Hezbollah and Lebanon into war, but also Syria with tens of thousands of its own troops in Lebanon.
So it's against this backdrop that the Secretary of State Powell is expected to be urging all parties with influence over Hezbollah, the Lebanese, the Syrians, and of course the Arabians to calm that border situation. Both Secretary of State Powell, expected to arrive here early morning, the top Lebanese officials including, we understand, (UNINTELLIGIBLE), the prime minister is scheduled to meet George Bush in Washington Wednesday. And then Secretary Powell moving onto Damascus, we understand to meet the prime mister there, as well as President Bashar al-Assad.
Bill Hemmer, back to you.
HEMMER: Brent, quickly here, how much support can Secretary Powell expect from the prime minister of Lebanon, and then further east in Damascus, what is likely to be the tone there when Secretary Powell arrives?
SADLER: Well, I think first of all the tone will be one of welcoming the fact that Syria and Lebanon have come on to the radar screen. I think that the fact that the United States is showing attention, showing its concern over the deteriorating border situation is important for both leaderships here in Lebanon and in Damascus.
And it will not only be Mr. Herrare (ph), the prime minister, the President (UNINTELLIGIBLE) and other top officials meeting Mr. Powell, trying to explain to him why they support Hezbollah in the complex of that Israeli occupied patch of land at the foot of the Golan called the Shebaa Farms, why they support that, what they're doing to stop other so-called renegade Palestinian attacks across the border, why can't the Lebanese with Syrian backing stop cross border attacks, particularly, you know, with situation between the Palestinians and the Israelis being such as it is.
But they are going to hear Secretary of State Powell's delegation himself. He'll hear with his own ears, for sure, that Lebanon feels very strongly about the (UNINTELLIGIBLE), about resistance being very important, not only for the Lebanese guerrilla, Hezbollah organization, but also for the Palestinians. And they'll be really reiterating to Secretary Powell also the message that came out of Lebanon just over two weeks ago at an Arab Summit, you'll recall Bill, that really promoted -- was a platform for that Saudi Arabia peace initiative, which all Arab states and the Arab league agreed to exchange normal relations with Israel if Israel withdrew from occupied Arab land from 1967. So that will be reiterated as well here. Back to you Bill.
HEMMER: OK, Brent thank you. Much more on this tomorrow when the sun comes up. Certainly Beirut is the first stop, Damascus later. Brent Sadler to be on top of all of it again as the story moves to Lebanon tomorrow on Monday.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
