Syria's
interior minister, who was questioned over the assassination
of former Lebanese premier Rafiq Hariri, committed suicide
in his Damascus office Wednesday, the government announced.
"The
cabinet announces the suicide of Interior Minister Ghazi
Kanaan in his office at the beginning of the afternoon,"
according to a statement published by the state news agency
SANA.
"The
relevant authorities are investigating," the agency
added, without giving the cause of death.
Kanaan, who served for two decades as Syria's powerful
military intelligence chief, spoke to Voice of Lebanon
radio earlier Wednesday and said it would be his "final
declaration".
The
suicide comes after a UN team investigating the assassination
in Beirut of Hariri interviewed Kanaan and a number of
other top Syrian figures in connection with the case last
month.
The
death of Kanaan, 63, comes just two weeks before the UN
commission of inquiry is due to release a report on its
findings.
In
the radio interview, Kanaan defended the presence of Syrian
troops in Lebanon, saying they had "done their utmost
to preserve the unity of Lebanon" during their 29-year
deployment.
The
deployment came to an end in April amid local and international
outrage over the Hariri killing.
Kanaan
also accused the media of damaging relations between the
two countries.
He
said reports since Hariri's February 14 assassination
in a massive bomb blast on the Beirut seafront, had wronged
both himself and the former Lebanese premier.
"My
testimony ... was to shed the light on an era during which
we have served Lebanon. Sadly some media outlets have
reported lies to mislead public opinion," he said.
"We
have affection and mutual respect for Lebanon ... We have
served the interests of Lebanon with dignity," Kanaan
said, denying reports in the Lebanese media that he showed
the UN investigators cheques paid to him by Hariri.
On
July 20, Kanaan was quoted in the Beirut daily As-Safir
as saying he had no information on the murder, stressing
that military intelligence was only in charge of security
for Syrian troops and coordination with Lebanese authorities.
But
Kanaan was seen for two decades as the paramount commander
to whom Lebanese leaders reported directly on political
and security issues.
Named
interior minister in October 2004, he served between 1982
and 2003 as Syrian military intelligence chief for Lebanon.
Earlier
this year, the US treasury announced it was freezing the
assets of Kanaan and his successor as Syria's top official
in Lebanon, General Rustom Ghazali, in a move it said
was "intended to financially isolate bad actors supporting
Syria's efforts to destabilize its neighbors".
The
Lebanese Central Bank last month opened up the accounts
of both men to the UN investigators.
Also
on Wednesday, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad denied
that his country was involved with the assassination of
former Lebanese Prime Minister Hariri in a rare interview
with CNN.
Assad
also denied that he could have ordered such an assassination,
saying "this is against our principle and my principle.
I would never do it. It's impossible."
Many
Lebanese blamed Syria and its Lebanese allies for Hariri's
assassination, but Damascus has denied any role.
Assad
was quoted as saying that any Syrians who were concluded
involvement by the UN investigation committee would be
regarded as traitors and charged with treason.
(China Daily, Xinhua News Agency October
13, 2005)
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