17/06/2010 The deadly Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla has increased the chances of war in the Middle East, Syrian President Bashar Assad said Wednesday in an interview to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).
Assad clarified that Syria was working to prevent a regional war, but added that there was no chance of a peace deal with the current Israeli administration.
He said the flotilla raid had "destroyed any chance for peace in the near future, mainly because it proved that this government is another pyromaniac government, and you cannot achieve peace with such a government."
Israel, under mounting international pressure, has formed a five-person panel - including two foreign observers - to investigate events surrounding its May 31 interception of a six ship convoy heading to the Gaza Strip.
Nine Turks were killed when Israeli commandos boarded one of the vessels heading to Gaza in defiance of an Israeli naval blockade.
Assad said that even before the raid, he had not viewed the Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a "partner for peace" in the region.
"No, we definitely don't have a partner, we know this," he said...With this government it's something different from any previous Israeli government."
Asked if the attack on the aid convoy had increased the risk of war in the region, Assad said: "Definitely, definitely."
"But realistically you had this danger before the raid because we had... other evidence about the intentions of this government, about the intentions toward the peace, about the intentions toward the Palestinians, the intentions to kill Palestinians. This is enough to talk about the danger of war in the region."
He added that the Middle East was going through a period of momentous change which would affect the region's future
The Syrian president rejected claims that his country was arming Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Israel and United States and Britain have accused Syria of arming Hezbollah with advanced and accurate weapons, but Assad appears unfazed by the accusations, promising that he is interested in good relations with the American administration but won't give up on the alliance with Iran.
River to Sea
Uprooted Palestinian
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