Hezbollah`s claims of evidence `ridiculous`: Israel

The evidence implicates Israel in 2005 car bombing that killed Lebanon`s PM.

Jerusalem: Dismissing Shi`ite faction Hezbollah`s claims that it has evidence implicating Israel in the assassination of former Lebanese premier Rafik Hariri as "ridiculous", a senior Israeli official has said it reflects the militant faction`s desperation "for a way out".

"This is completely ridiculous, and most importantly, everyone knows it," a senior official in the Israeli Prime Minister`s Office told The Jerusalem Post responding to the allegations.

"When they start casting for straws like this, it just shows the degree of pressure they are under. They are looking for a way out," he said.

Hezbollah, the PMO official said, will have a serious problem in its hands if it will be indicted for the murder. The faction is worried that the UN international tribunal investigating the murder will place the blame at its doorstep, Israeli officials generally say responding to the allegations.

Palestinian News Agency Ma`an reported last week that Hezbollah had evidence that implicated Israel in the 2005 car bombing that killed Hariri.

The agency quoted a Hezbollah’s spokesman as saying that the evidence, which has not yet been released, is "comprehensive, revealing, conclusive information”.

Hariri, who was killed alongside 20 others in Beirut, was the father of current premier Sa`ad Hariri.

Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah last month criticised the UN tribunal investigating the assassination since 2007, amid reports that members of his organisation will likely be accused of being involved in the murder.

Nasrallah called into question the impartiality of the tribunal, arguing that some of its members were connected to Israel.

PTI

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