Lebanese Druze leader admits offending Syrian president

Mar 13, 2010, 21:10 GMT

Beirut - Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblat, who is also a member of Parliament, admitted Saturday that he had insulted Syrian President Bashar Assad in the last five years and said he was not sure that the Syrian leader could tolerate the verbal offense.

'I had offended Syrian President Bashar Assad during a moment of anger,' Jumblat said in an interview with the Doha-based al-Jazeera Arabic satellite channel.

'I have used improper language, and I'm not sure that Assad could tolerate this.'

Jumblatt was a member of the Western-backed anti-Syrian March 14th coalition and an outspoken critic of the Syrian regime. A few months ago, Jumblatt left the coalition and started to mend fences with the pro-Syrian, Hezbollah-led opposition, and with Syria.

He has described Assad as a 'monkey' and a 'snake' in several speeches, and accused the Syrian regime of being behind the slaying of Lebanese former premier Rafik Hariri.

Rafik Hariri was assassinated in 2005 in a car bomb blast in Beirut. His killing was widely blamed on Syria, a charge that Damascus still vehemently denies.

Following Hariri's assassination and under international pressure, Syria ended its 30-year military presence in Lebanon.

Recently, Syrian-Lebanese relations were mended after current Prime Minister Saad Hariri, son of the late Rafik Hariri, visited Damascus and held talks with Assad.

Jumblat, in his comments to al-Jazeera, urged the Syrian leadership to turn a page on the past 'for the sake of both countries' interests.'

'I want to clear up the relationship with Syria, open a new page and establish normal ties between Lebanon and Syria,' Jumblat said.

'I tell the Syrian people that we share the same destiny. We are one people, one land. There won't be two states.'