Hezbollah: U.S. wants civil strife in Lebanon

6/4/2005

The chief of the Lebanese Hezbollah group warned on Friday that U.S. pressure on Lebanon could lead to turmoil and urged the Lebanese to unite and reject Washington's demands.

"The Americans will push the country to strife if it doesn't go along with their priorities, agenda and arrangements. They want strife (in Lebanon)," Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah told a meeting to commemorate the 16th anniversary of the death of Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

He said the Lebanese should think for themselves what to do after the May 29-June 19 parliamentary elections. Hizbollah is running on a joint ticket with Amal, the other main Shi'ite Muslim group in the second stage of the poll on Sunday.

"If we don't all stand up as Lebanese to express our national interests and national will, the colonial and tyrant American will try to impose its priorities on us and push us to confront each other," he said.

The United States is leading calls for Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah in line with the UN Security Council resolution last year which also called for Syrian troops to leave Lebanon, which they have done.

Hezbollah, which drove out Israeli troops from south Lebanon in 2000, has vowed to fight to the death any attempts to take away its weapons.

The groups leader urged the Lebanese not to jump to accusing Syria of every act of violence. A bomb killed Sunni Muslim former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri last February and was followed by a number of smaller bombings in Christian areas, the last of which killed a prominent anti-Syria journalist on Thursday.

"Let us think a little before we rush to issue accusations in a certain direction," Nasrallah said. "Those who are doing this want to push Lebanon and the Lebanese toward civil strife so that they can impose all their conditions."