BEIRUT: Baath Party MP Assem Qanso said there was no evidence that Syrian opposition members had been kidnapped in Lebanon, and accused Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt of having supervised the killing of missing Syrian dissident Shibli Aisamy.

"All that talk about kidnapping of Syrians in Lebanon is fabricated and lacks evidence," Qanso told el-Nashra website.

"Since when did Walid Jumblatt care about Syrian opposition [figures]?” asked Qanso, a Baalbek-Hermel MP and the former head of the Baath Party in Lebanon.

Three brothers, believed to be Syrian opposition members, as well Aisamy, a dissident and co-founder of Syria’s ruling Baath Party have disappeared in recent months.

Qanso suggested that Aisamy may have been killed, and hinted that Jumblatt and Aley MP Akram Shehayeb may have supervised the murder.

“It is not unlikely that Jumblatt and Shehayeb oversaw the liquidation of Aisamy,” he said.

Shehayeb swiftly hit back at Qanso.

“It seems that the 13 Syrian opposition [figures alleged to be missing] did not know that the Baath Party MP is too busy with his colleagues to be devoted to kidnappings so they hid themselves, unless a group from another planet abducted them with no trace,” Shehayeb mocked.

Police chief Maj. Gen. Ashraf Rifi said last month that Internal Security Forces has collected "dangerous information" pointing to the Syrian Embassy’s involvement in the May disappearance of Aisamy.

Aisamy, 86, was abducted in Aley, minutes after leaving his daughter’s home for a walk.

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Najib Mikati acknowledged that members of the Syrian opposition had gone missing in Lebanon, but said it had happened before his government came to power.

"This happened several months ago, before the formation of the government" in mid-June, Mikati said of the kidnappings in an interview with BBC Arabic.

Qanso Thursday suggested that Aisamy’s disappearance could not necessarily be traced to Lebanon.

“We didn’t even know he was here [in Lebanon]. He [Aisamy] was living among them [the Druze community]. He may have been killed over a family or inter-Druze dispute,” Qanso suggested.

In a statement issued Wednesday, Jumblatt questioned whether reports were true that the number of Syrian activists kidnapped in Lebanon has reached 13.

“Are we about to establish a return of the renowned era of security tutelage?” Jumblatt asked.

Qanso hit back Thursday, accusing Jumblatt of being paid for making such statements.

“We know that these statements are being paid in advance by the Future Movement, Israel and America,” he said.

Regarding all-party talks, Qanso lamented there was no “basis for dialogue.”

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has stepped up efforts to revive dialogue among the rival political leaders to discuss a defense strategy for Lebanon.