Assafir: Syrians interrogated on the Hariri assassination

In its Saturday's issue, the Lebanese daily Assafir said that the UN investigator Detlive Meles interrogated three Syrian army officers, in writing, who were working in Lebanon prior to the withdrawal of the Syrian forces from the country.

The Syrians who were investigated included the chairman of the security and intelligence department, Maj. Gen. Rostoum Ghazali. The paper said, without identifying its sources, that Syria agreed to the principle of "listening to the three officers" in the "framework of facilitating the investigation," as Syria considered that its sovereignty prevents bringing its soldiers before a foreign judge. Therefore, Syria asked the interrogation of its army officers to be made through a message including the questions that should be answered through a message arriving at the Syrian foreign ministry through its mission at the UN.

The paper confirmed that Ghazali and the former chairman of the Syrian intelligence branch Muhammad Makhlouf, and Col. Jame Jame who was one of Makhlouf' s assistant, "answered in writing" the question raised by the UN investigator Detlev Meles.

Worthy mentioning that the Lebanese opposition accused the Syrian and Lebanese security regimes of responsibility for the assassination of the former Lebanese prime minister al-Hariri who was killed together with 10 of his escorts in an explosion targeting their convoy on February 14.

It is presumed that Meles will submit to the UN Security Council a report on his work before September 15, the date when the three months set for his mission expires.