Syria's state-run radio yesterday lashed out at US accusations of Syrian involvement in a Lebanese politician's murder and said Washington's designs to reshape the Middle East were no longer a secret. "The American-Israeli objective is no longer a secret," said Damascus Radio. "All the countries and peoples, Arabs and foreigners, have found out the scope of the plan drawn up for the region," it said. "The statements made by US officials, especially those of (Secretary of State) Condoleezza Rice making accusations against Syria ... no longer fool anyone," the radio said in its daily commentary. The United States angrily linked Syria's "long and continued presence" in Lebanon to the killing of George Hawi in a Beirut bomb blast on Tuesday. Damascus Radio said "the plan which was launched with the US war in Iraq is continuing today in Lebanon. The US-Israeli aim is to provoke trouble and sow discord among the Arabs, especially Syria and Lebanon."Meanwhile, fears mounted in Lebanon yesterday of a new cycle of political murders after the slaying of an anti-Damascus critic in what Washington said was a bid to intimidate Lebanese as they seek to break free of Syria's grip. The killing of veteran former Communist Party leader Hawi came at a crucial time for Lebanon, which has yet to form a new government following elections won by an anti-Syrian alliance. "Who's next?" asked leading An-Nahar newspaper ominously, recounting the list of political figures killed or injured in attacks over the past months, the most prominent being ex-Premier Rafik Hariri, who was blown up in a February bombing. "These attacks are aimed at destabilizing Lebanon," said political analyst Joe Bahout. "It's a way of paralyzing the political classes and intellectuals."