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Subscribe to RSSHundreds were rushed to emergency rooms after an explosion left a 15-foot crater in one of Beirut's nicest neighborhoods. NBC's Stephanie Gosk reports.
Updated at 4:43 p.m. ET: BEIRUT, Lebanon -- A huge car bomb explosion in Beirut on Friday killed a top Lebanese security official whose investigations implicated Syria and Hezbollah in the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik al-Hariri seven years ago.
The rush-hour bomb in the center of the Lebanese capital killed eight people and wounded about 80 others, heightening fears that Syria's war is spilling over into Lebanon.
Among the dead was Wissam al-Hassan, the head of a Lebanese intelligence agency who had also uncovered a recent bomb plot that led to the arrest of a pro-Syrian Lebanese politician, a Lebanese official said.
NBC's Paul Nassar describes the scene after a bomb killed 8 people in Lebanon Friday.
Al-Hassan was a close aide to Hariri, a Sunni Muslim who was killed in a 2005 bomb attack in downtown Beirut. Al-Hassan's investigation into Hariri's death uncovered evidence that implicated Syria and Hezbollah in the killing.
Follow this story at BreakingNews.com
It was also not clear if the explosion targeted any political figure in Lebanon's divided community but it occurred at a time of heightened tension between Lebanese factions on opposite sides of the Syria conflict.
Ambulances rushed to the scene in the Ashafriyeh district, a mostly Christian area, as smoke rose from the area.
The explosion ripped through the street where the office of the anti-Damascus Christian Phalange Party is located near Sassine Square.
Reuters
Phalange leader Sami al-Gemayel, a staunch opponent of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and a member of parliament, condemned the attack.
"Let the state protect the citizens. We will not accept any procrastination in this matter, we cannot continue like that. We have been warning for a year. Enough," said Gemayel, whose brother was assassinated in November 2006.
Several cars were set on fire by the explosion and the front of a multi-story building was badly damaged. Residents ran about in panic looking for relatives while others helped carry the wounded to ambulances, Reuters reported.
Reuters
Huge blast explodes in a central Beirut street injures dozens, kills at least eight.
Pope tells Christians in Beirut: 'Be peacemakers'
Security forces blanketed the area.
Witness Danny Rizkallah told NBC News the blast took place close to the headquarters of a Lebanese opposition political party with links to Syria rebels and close to the scene of the 1982 assassination of then president-elect Bachir Gemayel. The affluent, largely Christian, district is also home to the American University of Science and Technology (AUST).
He said he was having lunch nearby when the blast lifted him from his chair. “It was an incredibly powerful explosion,” he said. “I knew immediately it was a bomb because it has such a different sound to shelling.”
“I rushed around the corner to see what happened there were lots of people injured by broken glass from the windows of nearby stores. It did a great deal of damage to nearby buildings and there was a lot of glass.
Hasan Shaaban / Reuters
Burning cars and damages are seen at the site of an explosion in Ashafriyeh, central Beirut, October 19, 2012.
“For this to happen is shocking because we really thought this sort of thing had stopped in Beirut, and for it to happen in the Christian district is also very unusual. I really don’t know who is behind this, or why. Our politics is very messed-up.”
The last bombing in Beirut was in 2008 when three people were killed in an explosion that damaged a U.S. diplomatic car.
U.S. officials are condemning the attack "in the strongest terms," calling the blast a terrorist attack.
"We condemn this act of terrorism," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.
"There is no justification for such violence," she added. "We obviously express our heartfelt sympathies for the families and the loved ones of those who were killed and injured, and we stand by the people of Lebanon and renew our commitment to a stable, sovereign, and independent Lebanon."
National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor said in a statement there is "no justification for using assassination as a political tool." He says the U.S. will stand with the Lebanese government to bring to justice those responsible "for this barbaric attack."
Sunni-Shiite tensions
Tension between Sunnis and Shiites has been rumbling in Lebanon ever since the end of the 1975-1990 civil war but reignited after the Syria conflict erupted.
It reached its peak when Hariri, a Sunni, was killed in 2005. Hariri supporters accused Syria and then Hezbollah of killing him -- a charge they both deny. An international tribunal accused several Hezbollah members of involvement in the murder.
Clashes over Syrian conflict in Lebanon leave ten dead
Hezbollah's political opponents, who have for months accused it of aiding Assad's forces -- have warned that its involvement in Syria could ignite sectarian tension of the civil war.
At least nine people die as Sunni Muslims and Alawites fight for a second day. NBC's Ayman Mohyeldin reports.
However fighting had broken out this year between supporters and opponents of Assad in the northern city of Tripoli.
Reuters, The Associated Press and NBC News' Paul Nassar contributed to this report.
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Great religion Islam. Worth dying for and killing all non-believers for. WTH are we doing over there at all. Its a religious war between different factions of Islam. We cannot bring peace there and shore up an unpopular government. Only a government strong enough to sit on it's people will last. One thing about a dictatorship, regardless of how you feel, it will hold a lid on it's people. We may not approve of how but they will quell them. Arab Spring is over and now its a power grab for the various religions. They have been fighting since the time of Christ over the same religion and their interpretations of it. The human rights people wring their hands but this is the same religon we are supposed to accept here in the U.S.
Support Israel--freedom lovers.
Let the rest of middle east go to hell where inhabitants can fight for a second eternity.
Time to stand firm is upon US.
It won't end in WW3 thank goodness, but there is a possibility that Turkey will enter the war as a supplier and border aggressor. I doubt they will send troops though. It seems that Hezbollah has a lot of enemies and is pitted against Isreal, the Syrian rebels, the Lebanese Sunni and most likely Turkey.
Russia is in an ironic position as well. They are being pushed into an alliegence with the Islamic Republic of Iran and Hezbollah.
The most enigmatic player of all is Assad himself. He is actually a soft spoken, seemingly decent person as is his wife. But, the position of dictator demands cruelty and suppression at the lower levels in order to maintain security. Since there is no real security in Syria, the culture has fallen to civil war. The conflict appears to have no end either because each side has independent advantages. The rebels have popular majority, and the Islamist mercenary, but no industry or superpower support. The Alawites have Russia and Iran, Hezbollah, and all the arms that can be imported. Neither side will let the other win.
Luckily the Muslim nations lead the world in first rate infrustructure like schools and hospitals. NOT. What a bunch of morons. One of the oldest societies on the planet and they still haven't figured out how to live in peace. Fighting over a dirt clod of a country. Lets stay the hell out of there with our troops. Same with Syria. KEEP OUR TROOPS OUT
And the beat goes...BOOM!!!!
Vote to Toke!!!
And things just keep on getting curiouser and curiouser
And Leon's getting larger!!
big john-[alice in wonderland?]
Another day in the Arab/Middle East World. Savages!!
The US should have allowed the Israelis and the Phalangists to finish off the PLO army and Hezbollah in 1982-1983. Instead, we inserted Marines between the opposing forces to protect the Palestinians from being wiped out. A year later, we received our thanks in the form of 283 dead Marines from a Muslim bombing - and Reagan DID NOTHING! So here we are, 30 years later, with the same Muslim fanatics still blowing up innocent people. However, since reality contradicts Mr. Obama's "Dreams of My Father", and Mr. Obama doesn't like his stories contradicted, we'll cluck our condemnation at the UN, and again, DO NOTHING. How about shutting down IRAQI support for moving Iranian weapons and troops into Syria, along the Al-Quida fighters to support Assad? These Beirut bombers, by their signature, are Muslim terrorists and allied with Assad. Just tell President Al-Malaki (Iraq) no more money for Iraq's "rebuilding" unless air support stops NOW.
If we would stay the hell out of these Muslim countries they would kill each other off in ten years or so. As long as they are killing each other and not us, what do we care??
Leave well enough alone, cuz if you don't stir it , it don't stink!!!
don't you just love those peace loving muslims that our muslim president says we must be tolerant of.
wow, to all of you who are bashing an entire religion. Firstly, do you really think that all muslim's are violent, evil, terror mongers? It is the predominant religion of the world; if "they" truly all wanted the rest of destroyed, we would be. Secondly, if you do believe this, what exactly are you advocating? Should we wipe them from the earth - this grave threat? Make the practice of their faith illegal? Eliminate them altogether? Gosh, that sounds an awful lot like violence and hate to me. Even reminds me a bit of a german fellow I heard of once before. The United States (from where I assume most commenters come) has been a nation that historically has stood for protection of religious and cultural freedoms - right back to our own origins if I recall. Guess that isn't a part of our ideal anymore.
Heather: Maybe it's time we Stopped protection of religious (Cult) freedom in this country. Since religion hasn't done anyone a Damned bit of good in the last Two Thousand years or more. Anyone seen God lately or ever??? The Number of people that have gotten Murdered in the name of Religion and are still getting murdered in the name of Religion today, are Staggering. We need to Abolish this Madness called Religion. And that is what Religion is, a Disease of the mind. Humans have created a God that is really a Devil in disguise.
I have been to Lebanon a couple of times. It was a beautiful country with hospitable people, christians and muslims living together in peace. Then Iran came along, formed Hezbollah, aligned with Syria (who claims Lebanon as its greater Syria) and made a mess out of the Lebanese government and peaceful way of life.
Hezbollah, Iran and Syria are definitely behind this car bombing. It serves them in diverting attention from Syrian massacre, and creating more chaos in the ME, sending a message to Turkey, and further making a firm foothold in Lebanese government, creating an openly hostile country to Israel. One more war front.
Lebanon will be going the way of other ME countries taken over by radical islamists. A beautiful country with wonderful people will go to hell under islam.
Allah Akhbar!!! Death to the infidel. Death to the innocent people in the name of Allah!
Such a lovely city, Beirut.
We need to get out of the Middle East
They hate the US and Have for decades.
It costs huge amounts of money and lives to fight wars.
It is senseless to continue fighting a winless war.. Bring our young people home
Un@!$%# the World
Obama Biden 2012
The O'bamas must be celebrating this morning; since the bomb was in the Christian sector.
Seattle has rain, California has earthquakes, the midwest has tornadoes, Florida has hurricanes and middle east has random acts of violence and terrorism.
How does this qualify as news? The sooner these humanoids exterminate themselves the better for the rest of us.
It's sad that there are those with no more respect for human life than the perpetrators of this crime.
It's too bad it didn't ( The Bomb ), didn't take the whole Damn country out, what a great start to ending Global Terrorism!
Susan Rice and the Obama administration have officially stated this bombing was in reaction to recent announcment of the filming of Ghostbusters 3.
Muslims claim they believe in heaven yet everywhere they go they create hell instead. go figure.
this just shows AGAIN that Islam is not the peaceful religion they claim they are. If your not them you must die. That is their Religion!!
Just an idea, can there be a transmitter that will send a short signal to every cell phone at once? Then as they get these bombs sit up it will go off in their face before they get it to where they want. Just send out this signal every few minutes......and BOOM!! Just my idea!
The more important question is, how will Romney spin this to be Obama's fault? Thankfully, crazy conspiracy theorist lee-936758 has already beat him to it. Drink some more of the Kool-Aid you right-wing nut.