WASHINGTON (AFP) – The murder of their former prime minister has united the people of Lebanon behind ending a 15-year Syrian occupation, a top US Mideast diplomat said, pointing to such a move as overdue. In response to Rafiq Hariri’s slaying 11 days ago, Lebanese demonstrators demanded Syria withdraw from the country. Beirut announced Thursday an imminent pull back of Syrian troops to the eastern Bekaa Valley near the border. “The assassination, the terrorist murder, of prime minister Hariri has had a very significant impact,” US deputy assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs David Satterfield told US-funded Alhurra television.