Lebanese Troops Surround Syrian Intel Offices

On a day in which Syria is expected to announce a partial troop withdrawal from Lebanon, Lebanese army troops and armored vehicles took up positions Saturday around the Syrian intelligence headquarters in Beirut.

**Update**

Apparently the Lebanese troops and armored vehicles were for the protection of the Syrians in the event of hostility; the troops later withdrew.

Syrian President Bashar Assad on Saturday ignored the Bush administration's demand that he completely withdraw Syria's 15,000 troops from Lebanon, instead announcing a two-step pullback to the Lebanese border and negotiations with Beirut on a full pullout. "We will withdraw our forces stationed in Lebanon fully to the Bekaa region (in the east) and later to the Lebanese-Syrian border areas," Assad said.