DAMASCUS - Syria on Friday welcomed the latest interim report by the UN commission of inquiry into the 2005 murder of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri, describing it as "professional."

"The report is professional, technical and does not preempt the outcome of the inquiry," Syria's ambassador to the United Nations, Bashar Jaafari, told the government daily Ath-Thawra.

"It does not make definitive findings. It underlines that Syria is continuing to give its support to the commission, which is satisfied with the logistical and security arrangements made by the Syrian authorities," Jaafari added.

The UN panel, headed by Belgian judge Serge Brammertz, has been investigating the February 2005 killing of Hariri and 22 others in a massive bomb blast in Beirut for more than a year.

In its latest report released on Thursday, the commission reported "progress in collecting new evidence" and described the cooperation of the Syrian government in the investigation as "satisfactory."

Syria's reaction to Brammertz's report was in sharp contrast to those of his German predecessor Detlev Mehlis, who angered Damascus by implicating a number of top officials and their Lebanese allies by name.

The Syrians deny any involvement in Hariri's killing. -AFP