Syria Slams March 14 'Accusations': Saniora, Hariri and Their Kings are Funding Terrorism

Damascus on Friday rejected accusations by the March 14 camp that the Syrian regime and its allies were involved in the assassination of former minister Mohammed Shatah, describing the allegations as a “stupid and futile” attempt to cover up for “financing terrorism in Lebanon and the region.”

“Some figures in Lebanon always resort to the approach of launching accusations whenever a painful assassination happens in brotherly Lebanon,” Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zohbi said in a statement.

“These random and arbitrary accusations are based on political grudges that reflect the links of individuals such as (former premier Fouad) Saniora and others to the enemies of the nation and the enemies of moderation,” Zohbi added.

“These are desperate attempts to refute a verified and solid charge about Saniora's role in supporting and financing terrorism in Lebanon and the region, especially organizations such as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, al-Nusra Front and the Islamic Front,” the minister went on to say, accusing Saniora of “providing safe havens for their leaders and operations rooms, under the sponsorship of (ex-PM) Saad Hariri and his kings and princes.”

Zohbi noted that “launching accusations in this stupid, futile and premature manner proves that some forces in Lebanon are controlling the ground now and are the same parties that are practicing terrorism across the region.”

The minister said Syria wishes “security, welfare and peace” for the Lebanese people, calling “all the honorable people in Lebanon to stand in the face of terrorism, for which some political forces are providing a real cover.”

Zohbi stressed that “terrorism is the enemy of everyone and of all peoples in the world,” calling for “confronting it in a serious, firm manner, away from the absurd rhetoric of political accusations.”

Earlier on Friday, the March 14 forces condemned in a statement recited by Saniora the assassination of Shatah, saying that his murderer is “known to all Lebanese.”

“Shatah was killed at the hands of the same murderer who threatens us on a daily basis,” said the statement.

“The murderer, with its Lebanese allies, is targeting Beirut, Tripoli, and Sidon in Lebanon and Syria's Daraa, Aleppo, and Damascus,” it added.

Shatah -- a former finance minister and an adviser to both Saniora and Hariri -- was killed in a powerful explosion in the Starco area in central Beirut as he was heading to a March 14 meeting at the Center House.

Several people were killed and dozens others were also wounded in the attack.