WASHINGTON, April 22 (UPI) -- Two U.S. lawmakers introduced a congressional resolution calling for tightening restrictions against Syria.
The resolution, drafted by U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., and U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., calls for strict enforcement of sanctions and other diplomatic repercussions due to allegations that Damascus provided Lebanese Islamist group Hezbollah with long-range Scud missiles from Iran.
"This transfer of these highly lethal weapons … endangers American as well as Israeli lives, destabilizes the Middle East and is an existential threat to Israel and the independence of Lebanon," Engel said in a statement.
He urged U.S. President Barack Obama to reconsider naming an ambassador to Syria and "enforce all existing sanctions against Syria."
Kirk, a U.S. Navy reserve intelligence officer, said he was deeply concerned by allegations that Syria provided Hezbollah with missiles capable of hitting targets in Israel.
"Once again, we see that Syria and Iran have no desire to control their military arsenals and will transfer any weapon they own to terrorists," he said. "We must protect our democratic allies by stepping up pressure on the Syrian regime and enforcing existing sanctions."
Both Syria and Lebanon's Western-backed prime minister have denied the allegations.
