WASHINGTON, Feb 14 (AFP) - The United States said Monday it will work with its allies and the UN Security Council to end Syria's military presence in Lebanon and to "punish those responsible" for killing Lebanese former prime minister Rafiq Hariri.
"We'll consult with the Security Council and with others on how to punish those responsible," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said, adding that it was too soon to be sure who carried out the massive bombing that killed Hariri.
"The people of Lebanon deserve the freedom to choose their leaders, free of intimidation, terror and foreign occupation," McClellan said in comments obviously aimed at Syria, which has some 14,000 soldiers in Lebanon.
It was not immediately clear what new UN action Washington would seek after Hariri, who resigned as prime minister last October after disputes with pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud, died in a devastating blast.
"The United States will consult with other governments in the region and on the Security Council about measures that can be taken to punish those responsible for this terrorist attack, to end the use of violence and intimidation against the Lebanese people, and to restore Lebanon's independence, sovereignty and democracy by freeing it from foreign occupation," McClellan said in a prepared statement at the outset of his daily briefing.
02/14/2005 18:06 GMT - AFP