Hezbollah rejects call to disarm

Nasrallah said the weapons would only be used to protect Lebanon

Hezbollah's leader has said it will keep its weapons, despite pressure from US President George W Bush to disarm.

Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said the group, a powerful pro-Syrian political and military movement in Lebanon, needed to protect the country from Israel.

President Bush had said on Tuesday that Hezbollah could "prove" they were not a terrorist group by laying down weapons.

Meanwhile, Syria's intelligence agents have left their headquarters in Beirut, as part of a phased Syrian withdrawal.

'Deter aggression'

Speaking in a televised debate, Mr Nasrallah insisted Hezbollah would remain armed in the face of US demands and despite Syria's pull-back under international pressure.

"I'm holding on to the weapons of the resistance because I think the resistance ... is the best formula to protect Lebanon and to deter any Israeli aggression," Reuters news agency quotes him as saying.

Mr Nasrallah said the group's arms would not be used domestically but only against Israeli forces.

Hezbollah mustered widespread support at a rally in Beirut last week

His statement followed comments made by Mr Bush after meeting Jordan's King Abdullah II in Washington on Tuesday.

"I would hope that Hezbollah would prove that they're not [terrorists] by laying down arms and not threatening peace," Mr Bush said.

Mr Bush later quashed suggestions he had left the door open for the group to play a political role in Beirut.

"Hezbollah is on the terrorist list for a reason and remains on the terrorist list for a reason. Our position's not changed on Hezbollah," he said.

The movement has been on the US state department's list of terrorist organisations for years, with Washington accusing it of sponsoring Palestinian attacks against Israel.

Agents leave

Last year, a United Nations resolution, backed by the US, called for Lebanon's militias to disarm.

Hezbollah, which has thousands of armed fighters and holds 12 seats in Lebanon's parliament, demonstrated its strength with a mass pro-Syria rally in Beirut last week.

Meanwhile Syrian intelligence agents loaded trucks with office equipment as they pulled out of their headquarters in Beirut's Ramlet al-Baida district and branches in other towns on Wednesday.

However, the US state department's Adam Ereli told Reuters news agency it was difficult to tell whether the agents were all moving back to Syria.

About 4,000 Syrian soldiers have left Lebanon in the last week, leaving about 10,000. Most of these are being redeployed to Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley.

Syria has promised the UN a full timetable for the withdrawal of its intelligence agents and 14,000 troops.