Assad: Scud Missiles a Good Story by “Israelis”

Syrian President Bashar Assad has reiterated that the alleged transfer of Scud missiles to Hizbullah was "not realistic" and said he told Prime Minister Saad Hariri that they should be "honest" towards each other.

"This is very good story by the "Israelis". We told them, what evidence do you have? You are scanning the border between Syria and Lebanon 24 hours a day and you cannot catch a big missile-scud or any other? This is not realistic," Assad told BBA U.S. TV network in an interview conducted by Journalist Charlie Rose.

Asked what action he would take if Washington told him to limit support for Hizbullah and Hamas, Assad said: "How could they convince me to lower such support? Our support is political."

He stressed his support to the resistance and Hamas, highlighting that Hamas is a Palestinian organization and Palestinian land is occupied and they have the right to take it back and therefore have a legitimate right to resist.

Assad also emphasized that this applies on Hizbullah as well, as "Israeli" warplanes violate Lebanese airspace on daily basis and every few hours and therefore the resistance has the right to defend its land.

The Syrian President called upon Western countries to support the peace process, reiterating that Hizbullah is a strong organization in the region and everybody realizes that. 

Assad acknowledged that he was seeking to build a strong relationship with Hariri and said he told him during the first visit he made to Damascus that they should be "honest" even if he thought that Syria was involved in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's assassination.