The assassination of Hezbollah’s mastermind and new U.S. sanctions against Syria could have lasting effects for regional stability and the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

Seymour M. Hersh of the New Yorker asks why Israel bombed in Syria.

Joshua Landis, a leading Syria expert, says Syria’s surprise attendance at last week’s Annapolis peace conference came after heavy lobbying.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit speaks about the stability and foreign policy of the region,

Gary Samore, an arms control official in the Clinton National Security Council and CFR’s director of studies, says it remains a mystery whether Syria was working with North Korea to receive nuclear technology. He adds, however, that it would make sense that Syria would be interested to develop some kind of deterrent, given that its neighbor, Israel, is said to have nuclear weapons.

A series of issues, including the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip, has drawn attention once more to Iran’s partnership with Syria and what it portends for the Middle East.

Mona Yacoubian, a former intelligence analyst for the State Department, says the special UN tribunal to investigate the assassination in 2005 of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri is linked to the politics of Lebanon and Syria, with the Syrians trying to sow enough chaos to prevent the tribunal from ever getting underway.

Some analysts want U.S. forces to raid suspected terrorist camps in Syria, but legal experts say such raids might not square with international law.

A long U.S. effort to isolate Syria appears to be fraying as player after player in the Middle East open a dialogue with Damascus.

Joshua Landis, an expert on Syria, says the recent U.S.-Syria meeting produced little because of the ongoing U.S.-backed probe into the killing of Lebanon’s former prime minister.

A Washington Institute Policy Focus in which Syria expert Seth Wikas takes a comprehensive look at the Syrian opposition's past victories and more recent setbacks. He outlines the major regional developments that have allowed the regime to divide and dilute the various factions arrayed against it.

CFR’s Steven A. Cook says the decision to speak with Iran and Syria on Iraq, marks “a positive change in policy.”

Geoffrey Aronson, who participated in two years of intermittent talks between unofficial Israeli and Syrian representatives, said contacts continue even though they have not sat down together since last summer. Aronson says talks led to a “non-paper” and unofficial accord by which Israel would return the Golan Heights to Syria and in return get access to water in the region.

Short Description: Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) discusses Iraq and his recent trip to Syria.

Congressional Research Service report that provides information about the current perspectives and policies of Iraq’s neighbors; analyzes potential regional responses to continued insurgency, wider sectarian or ethnic violence, and long-term stabilization; discusses shared concerns and U.S. long-term regional interests; and reviews U.S. policy options for responding to various contingencies.

Richard N. Haass, CFR president and a well-known Middle East expert, says what President Bush’s Iraq speech “represented more than anything else was the re-Americanization of the effort.”

Michael Young, an expect commentator on Lebanese affairs, says he has little doubt the recent assassination of Christian leader Pierre Gemayel and other killings in Lebanon were carried out by Syria and its Lebanese allies.