Beirut (dpa) – The head of the Shiite Hezbollah movement lashed out at US President George W Bush for interfering in Lebanon’s affairs by freezing the assets of people undermining the government of Prime Minister Fouad Seniora, local radio reported Saturday.

“The US is imposing its policies on the region and this country… and it is the one pushing for a civil war,” Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah told tens of thousands of his followers in Baalbek late Friday.

Bush declared on Thursday “a national emergency” initiative to deal with “certain” people that “undermine Lebanon’s legitimate and democratically elected government” by freezing their assets.

The order will allow the US Treasury Department “to freeze and seize property and other assets” of people who Washington deems threats to Lebanon’s democracy and agents of Syrian influence there, State Department spokesman Tom Casey said.

No individuals targeted by the measure were immediately named.

Bush’s statement came during a Middle East tour by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, aimed at bolstering US-friendly governments and rekindling Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.