[(Title)] Israeli minister: no knowledge of Trump ordering Assad killed.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's intelligence minister said on Wednesday he had no knowledge of close ally U.S. President Donald Trump ever ordering the killing of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad.

周三，以色列情报部长表示，他不知道美国总统唐纳德·特朗普曾下令杀害叙利亚总统巴沙尔·阿萨德。

A new book by Watergate reporter Bob Woodward,  "Fear: Trump in the White House" , says Trump told his defense secretary that he wanted to have Assad assassinated in response to a chemical attack on Syrian civilians in April 2017.

水门案记者鲍勃·伍德沃德的新书《恐惧：特朗普在白宫》中说，特朗普告诉国防部长，他想让阿萨德被暗杀，作为2017年4月叙利亚平民遭受化学攻击的回应。

The book said James Mattis, the defense secretary, told Trump he would  "get right on it"  but instead developed a plan for a limited air strike that did not threaten Assad personally.

该书称，国防部长詹姆斯·马蒂斯告诉特朗普，他将“抓住机会”。但是，他反而制定了一项有限的空袭计划，不会威胁到阿萨德本人。

Trump tweeted that quotes attributed to Mattis were  "made up frauds, a con on the public" . Mattis dismissed the book as  "a uniquely Washington brand of literature" .

特朗普在推特上发表推文称，马蒂斯是“由欺诈编造的，一个针对公众的阴谋”。马蒂斯将这本书斥为“华盛顿独特的文学品牌”。

"I do not know of any such instruction. He (Trump) is also denying it, by the way,"  Israeli Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz told Tel Aviv radio station 103 FM.

以色列情报部部长雅各·卡茨告诉特拉维夫电台103FM：“我不知道有任何这样的指示，他（特朗普）也否认这一点。”

"In any event, what can be said is that in the framework of the coordination between the United States and Israel ... the subject of the Syrian regime is certainly part of the discussions. Israel did not take a decision to topple Assad."

“无论如何，可以说，在美国和以色列之间的协调框架内……叙利亚政权的问题当然是讨论的一部分。以色列并没有做出推翻阿萨德的决定。”

While formally neutral on the 7-year civil war in neighboring Syria, Israel has carried out scores of air strikes against suspected attempts by Assad's Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah allies to set up permanent posts or advanced arms.

尽管以色列在邻国叙利亚长达7年的内战中保持中立，但以色列却因阿萨德的伊朗和黎巴嫩真主党盟友试图建立永久哨所或先进武器，进行了数十次空袭。

Under decades of Assad family rule, Syria has maintained a Cold War-style hostility toward Israel. Katz said Israel did not see a better alternative to Assad among Syrian rebel groups.

在阿萨德家族统治的几十年间，叙利亚一直对以色列持冷战式的敌对态度。卡茨说，以色列没有在叙利亚反叛团体中，看到比阿萨德更好的选择。

"Of course his (Assad's) actions are terrible actions, and something that we abhor and condemn. Those opposing him, ISIS and others, are not a side that we think are better. We took care to preserve our interests,"  Katz said.

“当然，他（阿萨德）的行为是可怕的行为，是我们憎恶和谴责的事情。但反对他的人，ISIS和其他人，也不是我们认为更好的选择。我们注意维护我们的利益。”卡茨说。

Woodward gained national fame for his reporting on the Watergate scandal in the 1970s, and has since written a number of books that provide behind-the-scenes glimpses of presidential administrations and other Washington institutions.

伍德沃德因报道了20世纪70年代的水门案而在全国范围内富有声誉。自那以后，他写了许多书，使总统政府和其他华盛顿机构的幕后得以一窥。

For this book, Woodward spoke to top aides and other insiders with the understanding that he would not reveal how he got his information, said the Washington Post, which published excerpts from the book on Tuesday.

周二，《华盛顿邮报》发表了该书摘录，并且表示伍德沃德对这本书最重要的协作者和其他内部人士说，他不会透露信息来源。

Writing by Dan Williams; Editing by Andrew Heavens