The Egyptian opposition daily Al-Sharouq reported on an alleged secret program to reshape the region in preparation for the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and to prevent Iran's expansion into these areas.

The plan's initiators allegedly include the U.S., Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, and it involves the reestablishment of the Iraqi Ba'th movement by former Iraqi vice president 'Izzat Al-Douri and its merging with the movement in Syria.

According to the paper, this plan is the reason for the removal of Syria's international isolation.

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