VIENNA, April 28 (UPI) -- Syrian President Bashar Assad weighed in on Egyptian allegations that Hezbollah was plotting attacks, saying such claims were baseless.
Assad told the Arabic-language daily Asharq al-Awsat that Hezbollah "had no intention" of launching attacks on Egyptian soil.
Cairo said it rounded up scores of suspects tied to a purported Hezbollah cell in the Sinai peninsula that was plotting multiple attacks in Egypt.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah admitted to placing agents in the region but said they were only there to assist Palestinians. Cairo said that assistance amounted to funneling weapons to Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip.
The Syrian president was on an official visit to Austria. He spoke to reporters there on the progress of the U.N.-backed tribunal examining the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, Hezbollah's al-Manar news agency reports.
Syrian authorities are believed to have played a role in the Hariri assassination as the former premier was known for his strong position against Damascus.
Assad lashed out at the tribunal, saying it was not moving forward with a sense of competency.
"If the case were tackled professionally, then it would end in a good way, and this is what we expect," he said. "You have to be professional to know who killed Hariri."