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Witness: Hariri's son made him lie
 Former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was assassinated February 14. RELATEDYOUR E-MAIL ALERTSDAMASCUS, Syria (Reuters) -- A man who called himself "the main witness" in the U.N. investigation of the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri said his testimony was coerced by Hariri's son and his advisors, the Syrian news agency SANA reported Monday. The United Nations released a statement confirming that Hussam Taher Hussam had been a witness for the investigation report, authored by German prosecutor Detlev Mehlis, but said Hussam came forward voluntarily without any coercion. "On several occasions, Mr. Hussam expressed fear ... that he and his family could be harmed by Syrian security elements," the statement said, adding that Hussam had "identified himself as a former Syrian intelligence officer in Lebanon." Mehlis had not previously named any of his witnesses and has not commented on the Hussam's claims. Saad Hariri, Rafik Hariri's son and a member of the Lebanese parliament, quickly denied the charges. Hariri's press office "reiterates that what has been said by that person are lies and does not relate to the truth," a statement said. The elder Hariri was slain February 14 in Beirut when a car bomb exploded by his convoy. The assassination led to a withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon. The Mehlis report concluded there was "converging evidence" of Lebanese and Syrian involvement in the killing. Hussam -- appearing masked on Syrian television -- said he gave investigators information about the car and explosives used in the killing because Saad Hariri "instructed and obliged him to give a perjury." "They want to fell the ruling regime in our country," he said. "They want Syria to kneel to the U.S.A. Hariri's inheritors are they who killed him. They are well trained and want to involve a number of Syrian and Lebanese officials by any way. ... "If I dropped my testimony, Mehlis report will shrink to five pages only," he said. "I am ready to witness in a hundred international courts." In the statement from his office, Saad Hariri said he regretted "this hopeless attempt to derail the investigation and the Lebanese and Arab public opinion." 
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