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Mr. D'AMATO (for himself, Mr. DeConcini, Mr. Graham, Mr. Gore, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Packwood, Mr. Adams, Mr. Mack, Mr. Dixon, Mr. Helms, Mr. Smith, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Moynihan, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. McCain, Mr. Lautenberg, and Mr. Lieberman) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:
Whereas since December 1979 Syria has been determined to be a country supporting international terrorism under section 6(j) of the Export Administration Act of 1979;
Whereas Syria has been directly linked to the attempted bombing in 1986 of an El Al flight from London to Israel through its paid agent, Nezar Hindawi;
Whereas Syria has continued to sponsor the activities of Ahmed Jabril, a Syrian-born military officer and leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine General Command, who has been strongly linked, along with his Syrian sponsors, with the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, resulting in the death of 270 people, 189 of whom were Americans;
Whereas Syria has supported and sponsored Abu Nidal, the man responsible for the simultaneous attacks on the Rome and Vienna airports in 1985, numerous assassinations of international officials as well as American citizens;
Whereas Syrian participation in the drug trade out of Lebanon provides up to twenty percent of the hashish that enters the United States as well as forty percent of Lebanon's opiate production;
Whereas these activities provide Syria with massive profits, reportedly as high as $1,000,000,000 a year, thereby enhancing its ability to sponsor terrorism: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
(1) it should be the policy of the United States to pursue discussions regarding Syria and terrorism at the Middle East Peace Conference in Madrid, Spain, in October 1991;
(2) Syria should, in this regard, completely renounce all forms of terrorism;
(3) Syria should cease all support of terrorism including financial, military, and political aid to all terrorist groups;
(4) Syria should close all terrorist training bases on Syrian territory and Syrian-controlled, Lebanese territory, particularly that of the Bekka Valley.
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We can never have real peace while terrorists are allowed to pollute the new world order. Hafez Assad sponsores, supports, and fosters the murder of innocent men, women, and children. There can never be real peace until Syria fully disavows terrorism and the terrorist community. To this end, Syria must completely renounce all forms of terrorism and cease financial, material, and political support for all terrorist groups, as well as close all its terrorist training camps in Syria and Syrian-controlled Lebanon before any real progress can be achieved at the Madrid Conference.
The Syrians are the slayers of our children. Too many have suffered because they use death to fulfill their senseless political agenda. To dismiss Syria's links with terrorism is to dismiss the deaths of those Americans who perished at the hands of Assad's assassins.
The list of American victims of Syrian terrorism is appallingly extensive. The bombing of Pan American flight 103 led to the slaughter of 189 innocent American citizens, including 35 students from Syracuse University, my alma mater. In this inhumane action, the terrorists murdered the future leaders of our country. These students represented the next generation of doctors, lawyers, environmentalists, businessmen. Can we ever forgive or forget those responsible for this senseless massacre? How can we discuss peace with this merchant of death?
Unfortunately, Pan Am 103 is not the only instance of Syrian-sponsored murder of Americans. Who can forget the tragic plight of our soldiers in Beirut; 241 innocent American Marines, defenders of our country, were massacred in their sleep in the bombing of the Marine barracks.
The blood-stained resume of Assad does not end here. The 17 Americans left dead in the bombing of the American Embassy in Beirut and the 5 American tourists murdered in cold blood at the massacre in the Rome and Vienna airports, only add to Assad's long list.
How much more evidence do we need? How many more mothers must lose their children? Hafez Assad is truly the Devil of Damascus.
As the founder and cochairman of the Senate Anti-Terrorism Caucus, I must tell you that Hafez Assad and his Syrian cronies are responsible for much of the world's most heinous terrorist acts. As the diplomatic community fawns over Assad, we must never lose sight of his brutal legacy.
We demand verifiable assurances that Syrian policy changes and support for terrorism ends. This butcher must stop killing Americans now.
If he cannot clearly and forthrightly end his support for terrorism, then the United States has no business dealing with Syria any further.
END