Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday slammed the "fabricated" claims that Hezbollah was involved in the assassination of Lebanese former Prime Minister Rafic Hariri, Xinhua reported.
Deceitful hands have killed a dear friend (Rafic Hariri) who cared about his country, Ahmadinejad said when addressing tens of thousands of Lebanese at the Al-Raya Stadium in Beirut's southern suburb of Dahiyeh.
"We are now witnessing how news reports are fabricated and international justice organizations are exploited to implicate other friends (Hezbollah) so as to sow strife," said the Iranian president, referring to recent reports that the UN-backed court probing the 2005 assassination of Hariri intended to indict "rogue " members of Hezbollah.
Ahmadinejad's controversial visit came at a delicate time when tensions between Hezbollah and the pro-Western bloc headed by Sunni Prime Minister Saad Hariri have been running high over the indictment to be announced by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
Ahmadinejad reiterated his country's full support for Lebanese people's resistance against Israel, adding his country will stand by Lebanon against any Israeli "aggression."
Iranian president's two-day visit that started on Wednesday has received criticism from the United States, Israel and Lebanese pro- Western group March 14 Alliance.
Ahmadinejad is due to visit south Lebanon on Thursday, where he will inspect villages reconstructed with Iran's help following the Lebanon's 2006 war with Israel. The Iranian president will deliver a speech in the town of Bint Jbeil, a few kilometers from the border with Israel.