By Aaron Klein

Even after the fall yesterday of Beirut's pro-Damascus government following a civil uprising, Syria likely will keep its troops in Lebanon unless stronger measures are employed, former Lebanese Prime Minister Michel Aoun told WorldNetDaily this morning in an exclusive interview.

Mass protests in Beirut called for Syria to withdraw troops (Photo: al-Jazeerah).

"We are not hearing that [Syria] will withdraw," said Aoun, speaking to WND from France. "We have no confidence in Syrian declarations. They have been saying that they will leave Lebanon for 30 years and nothing has been accomplished. The international community needs to use stronger means to pressure Syria."

Aoun said he was not specifically advocating force to remove Syria's nearly 20,000 troops from Lebanese soil, but said "Syria has to feel that they are being immediately kicked out by the world. This is the only thing that can work."

Lebanese Prime Minister Omar Karami yesterday announced the resignation of his government during a parliamentary debate about the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri for which Syria has been blamed.

The dramatic announcement followed nearly two weeks of mass protests in which tens of thousands assembled daily in Beirut holding prayer vigils and marching on the site of Hariri's assassination, some chanting "Syria out!" and "Down with the government!"

Former Lebanese Prime Minister Michel Aoun

Aoun said he was not surprised by Karami's resignation.

"It was a direct consequence of what is happening on the streets in Beirut and what we are doing," Aoun said. "The people are applying pressure and the government realized things cannot continue."

It was not immediately clear what effect the fall of the pro-Syrian Lebanese government would have on Damascus and its continued occupation of Lebanon. Syria offered no official response after the fall of Karimi's government, although in published comments yesterday, Syrian President Bashar Assad said his soldiers will remain in Lebanon until he receives what he called a guarantee of peace.

"Under a technical point of view, the withdrawal can happen by the end of the year," Assad told the Italian newspaper La Repubblica. "But under a strategic point of view, it will only happen if we obtain serious guarantees. In one word: peace."

Syrian officials said last week troops would withdraw from mountain and coastal areas in Lebanon in line with a 1989 agreement, but there has been no sign of such a redeployment.

Many analysts agree Syrian President Bashar Assad considers his influence in Lebanon a key factor to his position in the Middle East and that a successful campaign to drive Syrian troops from Lebanon would devastate the Syrian government.

Assad largely depends on Lebanese trade to fuel the Syrian economy and has used Hezbollah militants, who maintain over 3,000 missiles on the Lebanese-Israeli border, to threaten the Jewish State and solidify Syrian regional power.

Israel yesterday blamed Syria for backing a suicide attack Friday at a nightclub in Tel Aviv that killed five and injured over 50. Israel also said a major bombing that was averted last night after soldiers seized a car bomb rigged with hundreds of kilograms of explosives was directed by Syria. Security sources said both incidents were funded and directed by Hezbollah forces, which at the direction of Syria has created a terror apparatus of Palestinian militants in the West Bank receiving full-time salaries from the Lebanese group.

Aoun told WND Hezbollah is creating an "issue" for the region and its tactics need to be debated.

"I think we don't need any more resistance in Lebanon, because we covered all the bases. Israel is not occupying Lebanon. Syria must be forced out. After that, any grievance Hezbollah has, such as about the disputed Shabba farms, needs to be negotiated directly."

Aoun is no stranger to revolt against Syria. While prime minister in 1989, he launched a "war of liberation" against Syrian military forces which had earlier invaded Lebanon. The war was highly popular with Lebanese citizens but failed to garner the international opposition needed to successfully oust Syrian troops. It ended in a cease-fire and the signing of the American and Saudi backed Ta'if accord, which required Syria to redeploy its troops to the Bekaa valley and confer with Lebanon on further redeployments.

Following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in August 1990, the American government garnered Syria's participation in the U.S.-led coalition against Baghdad, and critics charge in return the previous Bush administration gave Damascus a green light to complete its conquest of Lebanon, allowing it to launch an invasion of East Beirut and the surrounding areas controlled by Aoun's government, forcing Aoun into exile in France.

Despite his exile, Auon has remained a highly popular leader in Lebanon, considered by many to be the country's most prominent opposition figure. There have been calls throughout the decade, both from the Christian community and from a significant portion of the Lebanese Muslim population for his return to power.

Auon told WND he plans to move back to Lebanon in April and may run for top office.

"But my first goal is freeing the country," he said. "After that, we will worry about politics."

Aaron Klein is WorldNetDaily's Jerusalem bureau chief, whose past interview subjects have included Yasser Arafat, Ehud Barak, Shlomo Ben Ami and leaders of the Taliban.