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Bush slams Beirut bombing, urges Syria to halt interference
WASHINGTON
Petroleumworld.com 14 12 07US President George W. Bush condemned a Beirut car bombing which killed a Lebanese general and demanded that Syria and its allies stop interfering in Lebanon.
"I strongly condemn yesterday's assassination of Lebanese Brigadier General Francois al-Hajj and extend my condolences to his family and the families of the innocents who were murdered alongside him," Bush said in a statement.
Hajj was killed along with his bodyguard in Wednesday's massive car bomb attack in Beirut.
"As Lebanon seeks to select a president democratically and in accordance with its constitution, interference by the Syrian regime and its allies, aimed at intimidating the Lebanese people, must end," Bush added.
US officials said they did not know who was behind the attack.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice telephoned Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora on Wednesday to offer Washington's support to his government during a presidential void, her spokesman Sean McCormack said.
"She expressed her condolences after the assassination of General al-Hajj," McCormack told reporters.
"She also underlined her continued support for Prime Minister Siniora and his government as well as for the efforts of the majority to find a solution to the question of who will be the next president of Lebanon," he said.
Lebanon has been without a president since November 23 when incumbent Emile Lahoud ended his term with rival parties unable to agree on a successor.
Senior military officers had been spared until now during a three-year string of assassinations of political leaders, including former prime minister Rafiq Hariri in 2005.
"It was surprising in the regard that there had not in recent memory been an attack on a senior military official," McCormack said.
"I can't tell what the motivations behind the attacks were. I don't know who is responsible for this," he said.
McCormack said Wednesday it was "positive" that Syria, which Washington has blamed for past assassinations, had denounced the bombing because it means officials are speaking out against "the use of violence as a political tool."
But he added that the Syrian government still had to show it was committed to "turning away from the use of violence to gain political leverage and advantage in the region."
McCormack said Thursday that the "Lebanese army is ... an institution that has really served well the people of Lebanon, particularly over the past year or so, since the end of the Israeli war with Hezbollah.
"And we expect it to continue to grow and continue to be an important part of Lebanese life," he added.
Story from AFP 13 1805 GMT 12 07
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