Wikileaks: Hariri: Suleiman Assisting Syria and Hizbullah’s Agendas
A Wikileaks report revealed that caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri had advised the international community to keep Syria and Iran in a state of "imbalance".
He added, according to the leaked cable published exclusively in Al-Akhbar newspaper on Wednesday, that despite Hizbullah's claims of victory in the July 2006 war, the party was in fact greatly harmed in the war and it is weaker politically and militarily.
However, Hariri's press office denied the report later Wednesday, describing it as fabricated.
According to the alleged cable published by Al-Akhbar, Hariri revealed that Speaker Nabih Berri had forced Hizbullah to accept the deployment of the Lebanese army in southern Lebanon, which according to the PM "is the beginning of the end for Hizbullah."
He stated: "Berri's power should be bolstered through the deployment and through international aid in reconstructing the South, where he would play a major role in the process."
In addition, Hariri requested that the his comments remain secret, saying that then President Emile Lahoud, Army Commander Michel Suleiman, and army intelligence chief George Khoury should be removed from their positions because they are assisting Syria and Hizbullah's agendas.
The cable said that Hariri strongly wanted Lahoud and Suleiman's removal through international pressure on Syria and Iran.
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