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Hezbollah denies link to Hariri's assassination

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-05-24 18:55

BEIRUT - Lebanese Shiite armed group Hezbollah denied on Sunday any involvement in former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's murder, after a German magazine article said investigators believe Hezbollah, not Syria, was behind the assassination of Hariri on February 14, 2005.

"It is not the first time such lies are published," a Hezbollah statement said, adding that the article, published Saturday on the German Der Spiegel weekly, was quickly promoted by Saudi Arabia's Al-Arabia TV which is known for its political affiliation.

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The statement stressed that the timing of such accusation is connected to the Lebanese parliamentary elections which will take place on June 7, and to the Israeli-linked spying networks which have been uncovered since last April and are still in the process of uncovering more.

The upcoming Lebanese elections have sharply divided the country and raised a tense atmosphere.

"It is a black fabricated campaign adopted by known groups to harm Hezbollah," the statement said, stressing that this campaign will fail to achieve its goals as other campaigns failed before.

Der Spiegel's English version said in its report that "there are signs that the investigation has yielded new and explosive results, pointing to new conclusions that it was not the Syrians, but instead the special forces of Hezbollah that planted and executed Hariri's February 2005 murder."