WikiLeaks: Hariri Afraid Next Israel War Would Kill March 14

Prime Minister Saad Hariri told former U.S. Ambassador Michele Sison he feared another war with Israel would mean the "death" of his pro-Western March 14 alliance, leaked cables showed Monday.

A document reportedly obtained by whistleblowing website WikiLeaks and published on the website of local daily al-Akhbar quoted Hariri as saying he believed Hizbullah would rise again should there be another round of violence.

According to the October 15, 2008 cable, Hariri told Sison he did not believe his U.S.- and Saudi-backed alliance could survive.

"Hariri confessed that he shared (Hizbullah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan) Nasrallah's fear of a war with Israel," read the cable, classified by Sison as secret.

"Asserting that some in Israel and the U.S. believe Israel should clear Lebanon of Hizbullah 'once and for all,' Hariri warned that such a move would only temporarily put Hizbullah out of commission because Iran and Syria would rebuild Hizbullah's presence in Lebanon," it added.

"Moreover, he argued, the Sunnis and Christians would lose because Israel would be fighting a nation, not just Hizbullah. 'It would be the death of March 14,' he portended."

Al-Akhbar began to publish a series of Lebanon-related cables it allegedly received from WikiLeaks days after the website's founder Julian Assange said his group would be collaborating with Arab media organizations.(AFP-Naharnet)