Syria’s bold assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri prompted the US to recall its envoy to Syria.

The United States has recalled its ambassador to Syria amid rising tensions over the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri of Lebanon.

Before departing, U.S. Ambassador Margaret Scobey delivered a stern note, called a demarche in diplomatic parlance, to the Syrian government, a U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Tuesday.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher, announcing the U.S. move, said that it the Bush administration’s “profound outrage” over Hariri’s assassination.

The administration had earlier condemned Monday’s killing in Beirut of Hariri, the billionaire construction magnate who masterminded the recovery of his country and insisted that Syria comply with a UN resolution calling for the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon.

White House press secretary Scott McClellan said it was still unclear who was responsible for the attack but the United States was consulting with other members of the UN Security Council about how to pressure Syria to leave Lebanon.

“Syria’s presence in Lebanon is a destabilizing force,” McClellan said. “The terrorist attack further underscores the importance of letting the Lebanese people control their future.”