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The USMC barracks in Beirut
A smoke cloud rises from the rubble of the bombed barracks at Beirut International Airport
Rescue and clean-up crews search for casualties following the barracks bombing in Beirut on October 23, 1983. Photo by SSgt Randy Gaddo, USMC
President Ronald Reagan (far left) and First Lady Nancy Reagan pay their respects to the caskets of the victims of the attacksPARIS-Syria was not to blame for a deadly attack on French troops in 1983, a senior French official said on Sunday, hoping to ease tension a day before the Syrian president attends the Bastille Day army parade in Paris.Instead, the official in President Nicolas Sarkozy's office pinned the blame on Iran and Hezbollah.Sarkozy's decision to invite Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to the July 14 parade angered some French soldiers and prompted calls for those marching to show their displeasure, possibly by not looking up at the official stand.Syria had been suspected of involvement in the truck bomb attack 25 years ago on French military headquarters in Lebanon, known as the Drakkar, which killed 58 French troops who were part of an international peacekeeping force."Something is being exploited. To say the Drakkar was Syria's responsibility is to make an error of historical fact," the senior official said, speaking on condition of anonymity."One may not want Mr Assad to be there, but to say that it is because of the Drakkar affair is simply an error."Assad and the leaders of about 40 other countries attended the launch of Sarkozy's Mediterranean Union project on Sunday, and all were invited to stay for Monday's annual parade."The Drakkar wasn't Syria," the French official said. "The Drakkar was Iran and Hezbollah.Ask anyone who follows this issue-they'll tell you the same thing."Minutes before the Drakkar attack, a suicide bomber attacked Beirut airport, killing 241 U.S. servicemen stationed there.Initial suspicion fell on militants of Hezbollah, then in its infancy, as well as Iran and Syria. All have denied involvement.Last year, a U.S. court ordered Iran to pay $2.6 billion to families of the victims, saying Tehran was legally responsible for the attacks because it supported Hezbollah. Syria, also a Hezbollah ally, was not named in the case.U.N. peacekeepers will lead Monday's military parade, followed by regular French troops, who were already unhappy with Sarkozy's reforms designed to streamline the armed forces.The government aims to cut the number of army personnel by 54,000 to 225,000, including civilians, in an overhaul that has angered many in the ranks who fear it will reduce France's fighting capability.Asked about the July 14 parade, Defence Minister Herve Morin said last week there was a limit to troops' right to expression.The march takes place less than two weeks after army chief of staff General Bruno Cuche resigned over an incident in which a soldier fired live ammunition instead of blanks at a public combat demonstration, injuring 17 people."The army has all the president's trust and it will be a beautiful display," the senior official told reporters, who will watch Monday's parade closely for signs of protest by soldiers.
To read more about the "drakkar" go to:
To read more about the "drakkar" go to:
As in the days of Noah...
