Qatar Denies Halting Visas for Lebanese Shiites

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani denied on Wednesday that his country banned granting visas to Lebanese Shiites over Hizbullah's stances from the revolt against Syrian president Bashar Assad.

“Our ties with Hizbullah are not bad, however, we have different points of view regarding the developments in Syria,” Sheikh Hamad said in remarks to the Kuwaiti al-Rai daily.

He pointed out that his country has always supported Lebanon and its resistance in the United Nations, deeming it a “steady” stance.

Qatar has been a strong advocate of the uprising of the Syrian people since it kicked off in mid-March 2011. However, Hizbullah, a strong ally of Syria, continuously voiced its support to the regime of Assad.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says that at least 27,000 people have been killed since the uprising. The United Nations says more than 20,000 have died.