President George W. Bush today warned Syria against interfering in Lebanon, as investigators tried to determine who was responsible for the assassination of a top Lebanese general.
Brigadier General Francois al-Hajj, killed by a car bomb yesterday, was a leading contender for army chief to replace General Michel Suleiman, who could be elected president by the Lebanese parliament.
Brigadier General Hajj was the ninth fatality in a string of assassinations that began with the 2005 killing of former Premier Rafik al-Hariri.
He was the first military officer to be killed, while the other attacks targeted anti-Syrian figures. "Like the many victims before him, General al-Hajj was a supporter of Lebanon's independence and an opponent of Syria's interference in Lebanon's internal affairs," Mr Bush said.
"I call on the international community to support the government of Lebanon in its efforts to bring to justice the perpetrators of these vicious attacks," he said in a statement.
Few facts have emerged on who backed the attack, but there was rampant speculation. Perhaps it was al-Qaeda-type militants striking in payback for Hajj's role in the army's summer onslaught on fighters based in the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared.
Or was it Syria warning the army not to tilt toward the United States or end its tolerance for the armed activities of the Shi'ite Hezbollah group? On the other hand, maybe it was forces unwilling to see the army led by an officer seen as chummy with Hezbollah and close to a Christian opposition leader.
The White House said Bush was not pointing the finger at Syria for Brigadier General Hajj's killing. "We're not prepared to say that at the moment, but clearly Syria has been interfering in Lebanon for far too long," said White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.
Mr Bush's stern words for Syria came after some hopes for improved ties between Washington and Damascus after Syria attended a US-hosted summit in Annapolis on trying to jump-start Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.