Lebanese President Emile Lahoud has dismissed reports of a meeting that reportedly took place in South America between Al-Qaeda and Hizbullah activists, and described them as Israeli-sponsored propaganda.
“The media campaign, which is conducted by Israeli circles, seeks to exploit the September 11, 2001 attacks to slander the (Lebanese) resistance by stigmatizing it with the image of terrorism,” Lahoud said on Saturday, according to Lebanon’s Daily Star.
“Everyone knows that the Lebanese resistance has always restricted its attacks to the Israeli enemy and has no links with Al-Qaeda as claimed by CNN,” referring to the news network that carried the report.
All Lebanese reject such claims, Lahoud stated, adding that attempts to smear Lebanon would not succeed, “because the world does not look at issues the way Israel wishes them to do so.”
CNN, quoting a US official, reported that several Hizbullah operatives met with representatives of Al Qaeda and other extremist Islamic groups in September in the area bordering Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay. The meeting, according to the report, took place in the Paraguayan city of Ciudad del Este, apparently to discuss new attacks against the US and Israel. (Albawaba.com)
