BEIRUT, Lebanon: Deputy Secretary-General of the Lebanese Hezbollah Sheikh Naim Qassim said the US government is waging a covert war in Lebanon that could plunge the country back into civil war by arming militias.

"There is now an American programme that is using Lebanon to further its goals in the region," he said. "They want to tie Lebanon into negotiations that benefit Israel and their plan for a new Middle East."

Qassim said: "America is forcing the government forces to prolong this crisis, because they want a price for it."

He said Hezbollah was "prepared for the possibility of another adventure or the demand of American policy that might push the Israeli army in that direction."