Lourdes Medrano Leslie
Minneapolis Star Tribune
The verbal beating that the Bush administration has inflicted on his native Syria had Youssef Haddad, a St. Paul college instructor, scratching his head in puzzlement for days.
Haddad said that although he has no great admiration for the Syrian government, it is difficult for him to believe allegations that Syria is a rogue nation sponsoring terrorism, that it has developed chemical and biological weapons, or that it has become a haven for top members of the deposed Iraqi regime.
“Where’s the evidence?” asked Haddad, who left Damascus in the 1970s for France and later moved to Minnesota. He is now a U.S. citizen and lives in Bloomington. He has a brother and several nephews and cousins in Syria.
The hard line that the Bush administration had taken toward Syria over the past three weeks eased slightly on Monday, when President Bush praised the country for sealing its border with Iraq and agreeing to hunt for Iraqi fugitives. But Haddad said Bush’s latest remarks served only to confuse him even more.
“I wish the United States policy toward the Middle East was one of clear directions, clear visions, clear statements,” Haddad said. He said he would rather see the U.S. government exert its influence through diplomacy than scare tactics.
