WASHINGTON, May 27 (RIA Novosti) - The United States will consider Hezbollah’s declared involvement in the Syrian conflict when deciding on whether to supply further aid to Syrian opposition forces, a White House spokesman said on Sunday.
Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah publicly admitted on Saturday that the Lebanese movement is involved in fighting on the border between Syria and Lebanon, with the aim of supporting forces loyal to president Bashar Assad.
“We’ve also in recent months ramped up our support in other areas in terms of nonlethal aid to the opposition,” White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest said.
“And I’m sure that in the days and weeks ahead, as we continue to review our posture here, that the public pronouncements of the Hezbollah leader will also be factored into this,” he said.
The White House official reiterated the US condemnation of Hezbollah’s involvement in the Syrian conflict.
The US Department of State said on Friday that the civil war in Syria “poses an increasingly dangerous threat to Lebanon’s stability and security” and reiterated its support to Lebanon’s dissociation policy with respect to the crisis in Syria.
Syria has been locked in an increasingly bloody civil war since demonstrations broke out against the Assad regime in March 2011. According to UN estimates, about 80,000 people have been killed in the conflict.
