Syrian troops in Lebanon fall to 8,000

Two thousand more Syrian troops
have left Lebanon, the Lebanese military said Monday, as a
Lebanese Foreign Ministry official flew to New York to
attend talks on the probable formation of a U.N. commission
into the death of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
The departure of an extra 2,000 Syrians brings the Syrian
military presence down to 8,000 troops, the lowest it has
been since Syrian forces entered Lebanon in the second year
of the 1975-90 civil war.
More Syrian forces are expected to leave this week. Syrian
soldiers were seen dismantling eight positions near the
eastern city of Baalbek on Monday.