BEIRUT: The Cabinet session was marred Thursday by a clash between ministers from the Future Movement and Hezbollah who engaged in a heated exchange over allegations that the latter party was guilty of tax evasion and money laundering.

Among other things, the Cabinet decided to hold a session on April 16 to debate the 2015 draft budget.

The verbal feud, pitting Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi from the Future Movement against Minister of State for Parliamentary AffairsMohammad Fneish from Hezbollah, threatened to cause a new split among ministers just two weeks after Cabinet resolved a row over its decision-making mechanism that had prevented it from meeting for three weeks.

Walking out of the Cabinet session chaired by Prime Minister Tammam Salam, Rifi reiterated to reporters his conviction that “Hezbollah evades taxes on Beirut’s port and engages in money laundering.”

Rifi accused Hezbollah of establishing a statelet inside Lebanon, engaging in money-related corruption and protecting the killers of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

Hezbollah has refused to hand over five party members indicted by the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon in connection with Hariri’s 2005 assassination.

Earlier, in an interview with the Saudi daily Al-Watan, Rifi accused Hezbollah of involvement in money laundering and international graft.

Fneish rejected Rifi’s charges and accused him of lying. “You are the justice minister, If you have evidence about the accusations you’ve made, present it. But if you don’t present the evidence, you are either a partner in the violations, or you are negligent, a liar and a slanderer,” Fneish said during the session.

“When a person makes a mistake and a group is accused, this is slander and is unacceptable,” he added.

Responding to Fneish, Rifi said: “We are in a coalition and conflict management government and we are keen on the country’s security and stability. But we will continue to struggle to attain the [powerful] state and eliminate the statelet.”

Hezbollah’s opponents have accused the party of running a mini-state within the Lebanese state.

Referring to graft at the port, Rifi said: “The situation at Beirut Port is unacceptable. Goods [registered] under the name of the party [Hezbollah] pass without [the payment] of Customs duties. The one accused of killing is [viewed by Hezbollah] as a saint. It is not a state when there are some who do not abide by the law and refuse to hand over persons accused of all kinds of crimes.”

Accusing Hezbollah of involvement in corruption at Beirut Port, the trafficking of Captagon pills and car thefts, Rifi said: “We will continue our political and cultural struggle to establish a state. We as [Future] ministers will work for the state in which we only believe.”

Rifi voiced his support for former Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s decision to enter into talks with Hezbollah.

The Rifi-Fneish sparring came a day after the Future Movement and Hezbollah agreed during their latest dialogue session to defuse tensions and continue their talks.

Tensions had risen last week between the two rival influential parties following former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora’s speech in which he accused Hezbollah of destabilizing Lebanon as a result of the party’s intervention in the war in Syria.

Siniora’s remarks drew scathing verbal attacks from MP Mohammad Raad, head of Hezbollah’s bloc in Parliament, and other officials, who questioned the benefits of the dialogue while Future officials kept up their anti-Hezbollah rhetoric.

The ministers were informed of Defense Minister Samir Moqbel’s decision to extend by six months Army Intelligence chief Brig. Gen. Edmond Fadel’s term, which expires on March 20.