Hizbullah orders members out of Syria

       Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem told London-based newspaper Asharq al-Awasat on Wednesday told the paper that it would be impossible "to control the common border" between Syria and Lebanon, saying that such a move would require its demarcation as well as a security agreement between the two countries. Despite admitting to the continued smuggling of arms "to and from Lebanon," Moallem held that Hizbullah was not in need of these weapons. Last week the Syrian minister met with US Secretary of State Condeleezza Rice in what may be a sign that the recent hardline American position towards the Middle Eastern country is softening. Moallem met with Rice, as well as Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Welch, on Monday to discuss various issues concerning the region, the Wall Street Journal reported. Hizbullah has ordered its members to refrain from visiting Syria until further notice, a website belonging to the Lebanese opposition wrote on Wednesday. The organization was responding to the recent bombing in Damascus that left 17 people dead. Many Hizbullah members, including senior officials, were recalled to Lebanon after the attack on Saturday. The website also said that since top Hizbullah operative Imad Mughniyeh's assassination in Damascus in February, the organization's members were told to take extra precautions while visiting the Syrian capital and that the call to avoid the city completely was instilled following last week's bombing. "Hizbullah considered Syria a safe haven for its people where they didn't have to take serious precautions [but] now it has become dangerous," the statement read. (13,38)