国际英语新闻：Hezbollah: our weapons not Israel's business

BEIRUT, April 16 (Xinhua) -- A Hezbollah official refused on Friday to confirm or deny Israeli accusations that the party has acquired Scud missiles through Syria, saying what they have is not Israel's business, the group's Al-Manar TV channel reported.

"What we have is not their business," said Hussein Haj Hassan, a member of the Shiite group's parliamentary bloc, adding "the group was always arming and preparing itself."

"Since Israel possessed all kinds of weapons, it's only natural for Lebanon to have the means to defend itself against an Israeli attack," said the official, refusing to confirm or deny Israeli allegations concerning the Scud missiles.

Israeli President Shimon Peres on Tuesday accused Syria of providing Hezbollah with the missiles. The U.S. State Department responded to the allegations on Wednesday by saying that if they were true "it would put Lebanon at a significant risk."

Syrian embassy in Washington dismissed the allegations of shipping Scud missiles and accused Israel of trying to divert attention from questions about Israel's nuclear program.

Hezbollah fought a devastating 34-day war with Israel in 2006. The group's chief Hassan Nasrallah vowed recently to "change the face of the region" in case of confrontation with Israel.

Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon warned in January that Hezbollah fighters are being trained in Syria to use sophisticated anti-aircraft weapons.