WASHINGTON, D.C. (Reuters):

United states President George W. Bush said yesterday his patience with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had run out long ago.

"Syria needs to stay out of Lebanon," Bush told a White House news conference when asked whether he would be willing to talk to Assad about stabilising Lebanon, which is caught up in a political crisis.

The Bush administration has tried to isolate Damascus diplomatically, though Syria sent representatives to a U.S.-hosted Israeli-Palestinian peace conference last month in Annapolis, Maryland.

"My patience ran out on President Assad a long time ago," Bush said. "The reason why is because he houses Hamas, he facilitates Hezbollah, suiciders go from his country into Iraq and he destabilises Lebanon," Bush said.