In For the Kill

Among some Syrians, there is growing suspicion that feuding within the regime may have caused the death this month of Ghazi Kenaan, the Interior Minister who was Syria's intelligence chief in Lebanon from 1982 to 2002. The government declared that Kenaan, in despair over media reports about his interrogation by the U.N. investigators, had committed suicide at his desk. But Mehlis' 54-page report, released nine days after Kenaan's death, made only brief mention of the dead man--fueling speculation that Kenaan was coerced to take his own life or was murdered, either to eliminate a potential Alawite challenger to Assad's rule or to prevent him from further assisting the U.N. inquiry.

For the many Syrians who have grown impatient with the thuggish tactics of the Assad regime, the U.N. investigation into Hariri's death is likely to stoke more outrage. The report not only provides a rare glimpse into the workings of Syria's police state; if its findings are true, it also makes a devastating case that Assad family members were complicit in state-sponsored murder. The report, quoting an unidentified Syrian witness "who claims to have worked for the Syrian intelligence services in Lebanon," says that senior Syrian and Lebanese security chiefs first decided to kill Hariri last September. A month later, the U.N. report says, a Lebanese security chief who worked closely with the Syrians told a visitor, "We are going to send him on a trip--bye-bye, Hariri." The witness said conspirators then held meetings at various locales in Damascus, including Shawkat's office. And the witness told investigators that two weeks before the assassination, Shawkat held a final planning session at his own residence and forced a Lebanese fundamentalist being used as a decoy to videotape the claim of responsibility that was broadcast on al-Jazeera the day of Hariri's death.

Assad is facing an excruciating dilemma. Calming the furor over the regime's suspected involvement in Hariri's death may ultimately require him to turn over his brother and brother-in-law for questioning, a move that could trigger a revolt by their loyalists. For that reason, many Syrians believe that Assad is unlikely to provide investigators with the level of cooperation they demand. But further evidence of Syrian obstruction could give the West the pretext it needs for sanctions that could cripple the regime. It's no surprise that Assad has kept a low profile since the release of the Mehlis report. A presidential confidant, Bouthaina Shaaban, says Assad feels "considerate and thoughtful about the situation but confident that we are doing the right thing." He doesn't have room for error.