PARIS (AFP) — Syrian President Bashar al-Assad outlined "conditions" for cooperating with the UN special court probing the murder of Lebanon's ex-premier Rafiq Hariri, in a French television interview Monday.
Asked whether he was ready to assist the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), Assad told France 5 television: "Definitely, as we co-operated with the United Nations committees" investigating the 2005 assassination.
"We are ready to cooperate with the tribunal but within our conditions," Assad said in the interview.
"Because any Syrian, whether in the government or outside the government, is within our rule, our authority," he added.
He pointed at an agreement between the United Nations and Lebanon, which he said ensured that a Lebanese judge sat on the tribunal, saying Damascus would expect a similar accord in order to uphold the rights of Syrian nationals.
"If they want to have any co-operation from Syria, there must be an agreement," he said. "If there is an agreement, a clear agreement, we don?t have a problem."
Hariri's murder in a massive bomb blast on the Beirut seafront in February 2005 was widely blamed on Syria but Damascus has denied any involvement.
But in April of that year Syria withdrew its troops from Lebanon, under international pressure, ending a 29-year presence in the country.
A UN investigative commission has found evidence that Syrian and Lebanese intelligence services were linked to Hariri's killing.
The STL's head, Antonio Cassese, said last month he planned to strike agreements with Lebanon's neighbours, including Syria, to facilitate the handover of possible suspects.
The tribunal has no suspects in custody since ordering the release last month of four pro-Syrian generals held by Lebanon for nearly four years without charge.
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