Three Killed in Lebanon Bombing
BEIRUT, Lebanon, Feb. 13, 2007 — -- Two bombs exploded minutes apart today, in a mainly Christian town north of the Lebanese capital of Beirut, killing at least three people and wounding 18 others.
In what security officials called a coordinated attack, the bombs tore through two commuter buses carrying people to work, just a day before the second anniversary of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's assassination.
According to eyewitnesses, the first explosion occurred shortly after 9 a.m. in a full minibus carrying 26 passengers; seven minutes later, another explosion ripped through a second minibus carrying 24 passengers that was more than 50 yards away.
Tania Khoury, 44, who'd been helping the wounded in the first bus, said: "We ran away when the second explosion occurred for fear of more."
She added: "I was terrified for my son. It reminded me of the civil war."
Khoury, who lives at a roadside snack bar near the scene, had tears in her eyes as she angrily shouted: "We just want to live. Nothing else. No one should have to die so horribly."
Some victims were blown apart, and their body parts were strewn across the street.
When the first bomb exploded, the driver of the second bus stopped and got out before his bus blew up. In both buses, the blast came from the rear; the second bus completely lost its roof.
The two blasts also shattered windows and other cars in the village of Ain Alak, near Bikfaya, the ancestral home of the prominent political Gemayel family, which is Christian.
Pierre Gemayel, a Cabinet member, was assassinated by unidentified gunmen in November. His father, former President Amin Gemayel, visited the White House and met with Bush last week.
Sniffer dogs, accompanied by investigators wearing white, searched the scene as the police gathered evidence. Security officials believe the bombs were "banana-shaped" and weighed at least 4.4 pounds.
Officials say they think the devices were packed with metal pellets and placed under the buses' seats.
Former Interior Minister Michael Murr, who visited the scene, said: "If the Lebanese from both sides [Lebanese government and the opposition] don't get together and talk, then the security situation will surely deteriorate."
Recently, however, for the first time in many months, there has been serious talk of rapprochement between the two sides and there have been signs that a deal is in the works to end the political crisis.
Maurice Moawad, a 50-year-old newsstand owner, also thought a solution was forthcoming.
"The end was close. We believe that. They [the opposition] do, too, but somebody doesn't want it to happen. They panicked when they thought the Lebanese would talk to each other again," Moawad said. "Every time the possibility of practical solution looms on the horizon the Syrians try to sabotage it."
Tension has been running high in Lebanon since street clashes last month between supporters and opponents of the government. Five people were killed.
Lebanon has witnessed 15 attacks on politicians, journalists and public places since Hariri's assassination on Valentine's Day 2005. Many Lebanese blame the attacks on Syria, which denies any role in them.
Some Lebanese speculated that the new bombs were meant to scare people away from a mass rally to commemorate the anniversary of Hariri's assassination, especially as they were planted on minibuses, which are favored by participants who travel to protests.
"We will not be scared. We are coming here tomorrow to pay our respects to Hariri," said Reem Ballout, a 24-year-old student checking out the preparations for Wednesday's event.
There were no plans to cancel the rally, organizers said. However, senior government, military and security officials met to discuss how to keep Wednesday's protest from turning violent.