Lebanon's Aoun tells Pompeo Hezbollah has popular support

Lebanese President Michel Aoun told visiting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday that the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement was a Lebanese party with popular support, the Lebanese presidency said.

"Preserving national unity and civil peace is a priority for us," Aoun told Pompeo, the presidency said on its Twitter feed. The United States views the heavily armed Hezbollah as a terrorist group. (Writing by Tom Perry Editing by Peter Graff)