Syria: U.S. Mideast plan an 'illusion'

Syrian President Bashar Assad said Tuesday that the U.S. plan for a "new Middle East" has collapsed following Hezbollah's successes in fighting against Israel. Israel's foreign minister, meanwhile, warned Syria not to intervene in Lebanese affairs or use the Hezbollah militia to influence the Beirut government. Assad, speaking to a journalists' conference in Syria, said the region has changed "because of the achievements of the resistance (by Hezbollah)." "The Middle East they (the Americans) aspire to ... has become an illusion," he said. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said early in the war between Hezbollah and Israel that any settlement should be durable and lead to a "new Middle East" where extremists have no influence. Assad said the fighting in Lebanon had been planned by Israel for some time, but the endeavor had failed and revealed the limitations of Israeli military power. "The result was more failure for Israel, its allies and masters," Assad said. In a 1982 invasion of Lebanon, Israeli forces surrounded Beirut within seven days, he said. But after nearly five weeks in the latest conflict, he said, Israel "was still struggling to occupy a few hundred meters." He warned Israel to seek peace or risk defeat in the future.