BEIRUT, Lebanon, Oct. 21 (UPI) -- Lebanese President Emile Lahoud called for the strict punishment of anyone involved in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
"No one is above the law, and justice will be applied on everyone involved with the criminals who committed the despicable crime," an official statement said.
Lahoud denied earlier a suspect in the killing telephoned him minutes before the assassination.
A U.N. report on Hariri's assassination said a man named Ahmed Abdel Aal, a member of the pro-Syrian Muslim extremist group al-Ahbash, who is suspected of involvement in the killing, called Lahoud just before the massive blast that killed Hariri Feb. 14.
The investigation, headed by German prosecutor Detlev Mehlis, found Lebanese and Syrian agents planned the assassination.
Four of Lahoud's closest aides, including three former security chiefs, have been detained for nearly three months as suspects in the killing.
In the meantime, the foreign ministry announced Friday that U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan agreed to extend the mission of the investigative team until Dec. 15, at the request of the Lebanese government.
