BBC delays television series on Hariri murder

London: The BBC has suddenly pulled a documentary film series on the assassination of the former Lebanese prime minister, Rafik Hariri, as tensions mount in Beirut over expectations that Hezbollah operatives are about to be accused of involvement in the killing.

The first of three parts of a series titled Murder in Beirut was scheduled to be broadcast on BBC World tomorrow, but the producer was told without warning last Tuesday that it was being delayed.

The BBC said the film had not yet complied with its editorial guidelines. No new date has been set. But the decision to postpone it was taken after a Lebanese newspaper described how it accused the Shiite group of the 2005 assassination, in which Hariri and 22 others were killed by a massive car bomb.

The point of the film, Al Akhbar newspaper claimed in a front-page article last Monday, was "to implicate Hezbollah in the crime", with one image showing partial details of a man described as a former member of the organisation's foreign operations unit. Last Wednesday, extracts were broadcast on Al Jadeed TV, a pro-Syrian channel.

Rising tension

Tension has mounted sharply in Lebanon in recent weeks amid expectations that a UN-backed international tribunal will shortly issue indictments in the case, the country's equivalent of the John F. Kennedy assassination. Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, warned last week that he would "cut off the hand" of anyone who tried to arrest its members.

Hezbollah, the most powerful military and political force in Lebanon, is supported by Iran and Syria and has repeatedly accused the tribunal of serving US and Israeli interests.

Sa'ad Hariri, the slain former prime minister's son and current Prime Minister, has insisted that he, Nasrallah and other leaders will not let Lebanon "explode" over the issue.

The series was made by ORTV, a British-Saudi production company, and originally commissioned by Al Arabiya TV, the Saudi-owned satellite channel. The first version was completed last summer, but never broadcast as Saudi Arabia sought to improve relations with Syria. BBC World then commissioned a re-edited version.

Initially, Syria was widely blamed for the killing, but it has become clear in recent months that Hezbollah is suspected of involvement, fuelling fears that Lebanon's rivalries will escalate dangerously if indictments are issued.