Mugniyah funeral
Photo: AFP
Mugniyah murder probe points to Saudi involvement
Iranian news agency reports Saudi security official was directly involved in assassination of top Hizbullah commander
A senior Saudi official was directly involved in the assassination
of top Hizbullah
commander Imad Mugniyah, the Iranian news agency Fars reported Tuesday.
The report went on to say that the Syrian security forces had reached this conclusion two days after Mugniyah's assassination, but that Damascus decided to wait before making the announcement in order not to overcloud the Arab League summit.
According to the report, the man, who works at the Saudi embassy in Damascus, contacted a Syrian woman who purchased two cars under her name, which exploded during the assassination.
Damascus Wary
Roee Nahmias
London-based Arabic publication reports that Syria, Lebanon delaying publication of report on assassination of Hizbullah commander due to tension generated by Israel’s wide-scale Home Front Command drill
The Syrian investigation findings are still being delayed. However, according to the Iranian news agency, the Syrians believe that senior officials in Riyadh – including the national security advisor and former ambassador to the US, Bandar bin Sultan – were involved in the murder.
"The Saudi security officials fled to Saudi Arabia following the assassination, but the Syrian security organizations arrested the woman, who was in touch with the senior Saudi official," the report said.
Israel, Fars added, was the main initiator of the assassination, which was reportedly carried out by local elements holding different citizenships, including Jordanians, Syrians and Palestinians. According to the report, these people purchased a number of apartments near Mugniyah's house in Damascus and lived there for some time.
As for Kuwait's efforts to mediate between Syria and Saudi Arabia, the news agency reported that a Kuwaiti prince had recently visited Riyadh in an effort to iron out the difficulties between the two countries.
