The United States has recalled its ambassador to Syria in response to accusations that Syria is responsible for the assassination of the former Prime Minister of Lebanon, Rafik Hariri. Hariri is considered to be responsible for the revitalization of Lebanon and had called for Syria to comply with the U.N.'s resolution calling for the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon.

Now, it is well known that, as well as being a safe harbor and frequent sponsor of terrorists, Syria has "administrated" Lebanon since the early 1980s. The U.N. Security Council passed Resolution 1559 on October 20, 2004 calling for the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon. Lebanon, under Syrian control, has been frequently used as both a vantage point from which terrorists attack Israel and a hideout for those same terrorists. With the War on Terrorism still ongoing, it will be interesting to see how Syria will respond. I don't expect the U.S. will even consider military action against Syria, especially with the developments in Iran. But I do expect that the U.S. will bring whatever diplomatic pressure it can to bear on the Syrian government.

Under any other administration in its second term, and especially under a Democrat presidential administration, this would be reacted to with minimal concern and (most likely) left to the next presidential administration. But, President Bush will most likely press the issue. Let's watch and see.