Trio seek tough UN resolution on Syria

The pressure on Syria is likely to intensify Wednesday when a report by the UN special envoy on Syria-Lebanon, Terje Roed-Larsen, on disarming Lebanese militias is released. There are allegations Syria is continuing to smuggle arms to Palestinian militia groups in Lebanese refugee camps, in violation of a council resolution of September 2004 demanding that all militias be disarmed.

But Russia and China, which have veto power, and Algeria, the only Arab member of the council, have been hesitant to use the threat of sanctions to back up a call for more Syrian cooperation.

A draft resolution circulated late Tuesday by the United States, France and Britain strongly backs a report by the UN investigating commission that implicated top Syrian and Lebanese security officials in Hariri's assassination and accused Syria of not cooperating fully with the probe.

The report brought swift denials from the Syrian government, which called it biased, politicised and an American plot to take over the region.

Syria's UN Ambassador Fayssal Mekdad told the council that every paragraph in the report deserved to be refuted. He insisted Syria "has cooperated faithfully and sincerely" and will continue to do so.

If adopted, the draft resolution would require Syria to detain anyone the UN investigators consider a suspect and allow the individual to be questioned outside the country or without Syrian officials present. It would also immediately freeze the assets and impose a travel ban on anyone identified as a suspect by the commission.

The language appeared to be an effort to pressure Syria into giving the investigators access to top security officials possibly including the brother-in-law and brother of President Bashar Assad who may be implicated in Hariri's slaying.

Syria would also be required to renounce terrorism and "commit itself definitively to cease all support for all forms of terrorist action and all assistance to terrorist groups and to demonstrate this undertaking through concrete actions."

If Syria does not fully cooperate with the investigation, the draft says the council intends to consider "further measures," including sanctions, "to ensure compliance by Syria."