 Assassins who killed Rafik Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister, travelled from Iraq through Syria to carry out the attack, according to the Beirut judge leading the inquiry into the bombing. Rachid Mezher, the senior investigator for the Lebanese military tribunal, said that the organisers had been recruited from Islamist groups linked to Syria and operating against the US-led coalition in Iraq. Although no firm ties with the Syrian regime have been established, his comments suggest strong circumstantial evidence of a connection.
| There's something in my head that keeps repeating "Mugniyeh... Mugniyeh..." |
Investigators believe that a suicide bomber drove a car laden with explosives into the 60-year-old billionaire's convoy last Monday, killing him and 14 others. Judge Mezher said that a video in which a fanatic called Ahmed Abu Adas said the attack was the work of "Victory and Jihad in Greater Syria", an unknown group, was a genuine claim of responsibility.
| My instinct is that the vid is genuine, and that the "group" is very small, pick-up, and will be heard from no more, unless somebody else needs boomed. Like Wally Jumblatt. Abu Adas is probably now back in Mosul, unless it actually was a suicide car boom, in which case the witnesses are all dead. |
Abu Adas, 23, a Palestinian Lebanese believed to have fled the country, attended two Beirut mosques known to be recruiting grounds for the Ansar al-Islam group, linked to the Jordanian extremist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
| That could be significant, or it could mean that they brought in a top-grade professional to do the job. Guys with turbans stick out less in the Muddle East than an Irishman would. |
Investigators suspect that the mosques have ties to Sheikh Abderrazak, a Damascus cleric who has helped fighters travel through Syria to Iraq. The Beirut attack bore similarities to suicide bombings carried out in Iraq by al-Zarqawi, who has increasingly strong ties to al-Qaeda. "We know that Adas had Saudi Arabian nationality and used his passport to travel to Iraq and Syria," said Judge Mezher in his only interview with a British newspaper. "The man converted to strict Muslim beliefs two years ago and returned to Lebanon only recently."
| "Strict Muslim beliefs" is a polite way of saying "Salafism," of course... |
The regime of the Syrian president, Bashar Assad, denies involvement in the attack and has rebuffed calls from Lebanon and America to remove its 15,000 troops from the country. It has a history, however, of using extremists in Lebanon as proxy killers. However, a Syrian intelligence official based in Lebanon said: "There was a gap in security exploited by the terrorists and their web must be investigated. This criminal act was an attack on Syria as much as it was on Lebanon."
| So do we see swarms of Syrian investigators, following up every clue? Watch the hands, not the mouth... |
Mr Hariri, prime minister for 10 years, resigned last year after Syrian pressure led to the extension of the term as Lebanese president of Emile Lahoud, his chief rival. Previously pro-Syrian, Mr Hariri had planned to campaign during May's general election against Syrian influence. Walid Jumblatt, now the leading Lebanese opposition leader, has accused Damascus of commissioning the attack on Mr Hariri.
| ... and the UN warned of the possibility of just such an attack, against either Hariri or Wally, just a day or two before the boom. This leads me to believe the UN knew something was in the works, probably something uncovered by the Frenchies, who are often very good. |
He is now at the vanguard of a popular movement to force the Syrian troops out of Lebanon. "He got killed and we are all on that list, there is no immunity," he said. "Syria is responsible. Who else? We don't want to open war with Syria, but they must go out."
| Since the warning pointed to Syria, and "we" equals at least Wally, he's got cause for concern... |
The Syrian president is a member of the Alawite religious sect, feared throughout medieval Europe as the Assassins. When its leader wanted an opponent killed, he handed a follower a dagger and his wishes were carried out. Many Lebanese believe that Mr Hariri's death was commissioned in similar fashion by Syria's Mukhabarat intelligence service. At the Zoqaq al-Blat mosque, a stronghold of the pro-Syrian Akbash sect, the imam blamed foreign powers - meaning America and Israel - for Mr Hariri's death. "This intervention is designed to disfigure Lebanon and is the work of foreign forces who mean us harm," he said.
| That's the F7 key on their word processor... |
American support for Lebanese opposition demands is growing. One administration figure said of the assassination: "If Syria did authorise this, it's the stupidest thing they could have done."
| Makes you wonder how Baby Assad made it through eye doctor school, doesn't it? |
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