Large explosion rocks Beirut

[allemand]

BEIRUT (Reuters) - A large explosion has rocked Beirut's seafront, witnesses say.

A large cloud of smoke rose into the sky from an area near a five-star hotel, they said on Monday. There was no immediate word on cause of blast or casualties.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/050214/325/fcf64.html


CNN: Apparent car bomb rocks Beirut

Monday, February 14, 2005 Posted: 6:33 AM EST (1133 GMT) <...>

CNN's Brent Sadler, on the scene, described two large fires and twisted, charred wreckage of vehicles.

"I haven't seen anything on this scale in Beirut since the dark days of the civil war," Sadler said. <...>

TV footage from the scene showed huge flames leaping from several cars, including one in which a person was sitting in the passenger seat covered in flames. <...>

Windows were smashed out of buildings in the city's financial center about a mile away, Sadler said. The explosion was heard as far away as the eastern hills overlooking the city, AP said.

More:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/14/beirut.explosion/




Cars in the motorcade of ex-prime minister Rafik Hariri, who resigned last autumn, were caught in the blast, witnesses said.

There is speculation the bombing was aimed at Hariri.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/050214/140/fcf7i.html

Ed. to add information.

[maddezmom]

1. AP link-Explosion in Lebanese Capital Kills Six

BEIRUT, Lebanon - A strong explosion shook Beirut Monday in a commercial area where popular hotels are located, killing at least six people, according to witnesses. Television footage showed one person ablaze falling out of a burning car's window.



Witnesses and a politician said the explosion was apparently targeting former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, whose motorcade passed the area shortly beforehand.


TV footage from the scene showed the devastated front of a building and flames leaping from several cars. A burning person struggled to get out of a car via the window, fell on the ground and was helped by a bystander who used his jacket to put out the flames.


Explosions in Beirut — while common during the 1975-90 civil war — have become rare since the conflict ended. However, in October, amid rising tension between the opposition and the government, a car bomb seriously injured an opposition politician and killed his driver
~snip~

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=540&ncid=736&e=1&u=/ap/20050214/ap_on_re_mi_ea/lebanon_explosion

[allemand]

2. "International Warning to Syria Against Murdering Hariri or Jumblat"

Naharnet:

Terje Roed-Larsen, the U.N coordinator of Syria's departure from Lebanon under Resolution 1559, has reportedly asked that President Assad be given a 'last chance' to bow to the will of the international community or face a financial blockade by the United States and the European Union. <...>
Al Hayat cited diplomatic sources in Paris for its 'last chance' report. It quoted the sources as also saying the international community had sent a clear message to the Assad regime to refrain from 'any bloodletting in Lebanon." The message warned that assassinating ex-Premier Hariri or Druze leader Walid Jumblat would initiate a "total, final and irrevocable divorce with the international community," according to Al Hayat.   

http://www.lebaneselobby.org/News__index/news%202005/02%2013%2005%20International%20Warning%20to%20Syria%20Against%20Murdering%20Hariri%20or%20Jumblat.htm


Car Bomb Hits Motorcade in Beirut, Nine Dead

BEIRUT, Lebanon (Reuters) - A massive car bomb blew up part of the motorcade of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri on Monday, killing at least nine people, including some of his bodyguards, witnesses said.

There was no immediate word on Hariri. <...>

The blast caused a large crater in the street, which was thickly carpeted with debris. The facades of neighboring buildings were reduced to rubble. <...>

Hariri, a billionaire businessman who resigned from government last October, has recently joined calls by the opposition for Syria to quit Lebanon in the run-up to general elections in May.

http://olympics.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=7619122

[allemand]

3. Former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri killed in Beirut blast

14:12 Al-Mustaqbal TV station, owned by ex-Lebanese PM Hariri, confirms his death in Beirut blast

14:01 Initial reports: Former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri killed in Beirut blast

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/ShTickers.html


CNN: Huge blast kills ex-Lebanese PM

Monday, February 14, 2005 Posted: 7:27 AM EST (1227 GMT)

BEIRUT, Lebanon (CNN) -- Former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri has been killed in an apparent large-scale bomb attack on his motorcade in Beirut, a bodyguard and officials at the American University of Beirut hospital told CNN.

More:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/14/beirut.explosion/index.html

[Zynx]

4. This could get interesting...n/t

[Cooley Hurd]

5. Just when you thought it was safe to go back to Beirut...

:(

[DoYouEverWonder]

6. Can some tell me, what the hell Brent Sadler,

happens to be in Beirut for at the moment? How convenient.

[underthedome]

7. Elections are in May, put the tinfoil hat away

General elections are in May and Syria had threatened the opposition, sounds like a good story to cover to me.

A Syrian official threatens the opposition 2 weeks ago saying that "the militants can get to them"

[maddezmom]

8. Brent Sadler is CNN's Beirut bureau chief

http://www.cnn.com/CNN/anchors_reporters/sadler.brent.html

[DoYouEverWonder]

9. Thank you, I didn't know that

n/t

[underthedome]

10. How convenient, CNN has a Beirut bureau chief n/t

n/t

[DoYouEverWonder]

14. I already

posted regarding my ignorance of that fact.

[illuminaughty]

12. thanks for thinking that

those were my first thoughts and I was thinking I'd gone overboard on the conspiracy meter.

Our media is beyond pitiful. They are still covering this in one minute pieces next to the M.J. trial and Valentine Day's annual crapathon. Meanwhile, BBC and Middle East news is covering it for the major, region destabilizing news that it is.

Just how did he end up a mile away? Elections in May? I don't think that warrants it.

[AFSCME girl]

16. very destabilizing to the region, indeed...

and on it goes.....:scared: Wonder what our idiot "President" will have to say about this.....

[MsLeopard]

17. First,

they have to sober him up, teach him his lines, and get him to stop laughing his a** off about all the death and destruction.... We ought to hear something out of him in about three days.

[AFSCME girl]

21. Hi MsLeopard,

sickening isn't it? Unfortunately, that is probably exactly what's going on....:mad: :grr:

BTW, welcome to DU!!! Glad to have you here! :hi:

[KoKo]

19. CNN is blaming Syria for this...talking to some London Correspondent who

says Syria is probably behind it.... See..we've turned our attention to
the other "problem" in the ME...the one we really want to bomb more badly than Iran...Syria...but if we can get them both by stirring up a hornets nest and hopefully getting Israel involved by destablizing the whole ME then Wolfowitz's dreams will have truly come true.

It's disgusting.... The Media is so out of contol that it's got to be even getting to the most clueless Americans ...the total hypocracy.

[AFSCME girl]

23. Hi KoKo01,

It is very disheartening. The frightening thing, as well, is this is only February of 2005....we have another 3 years of this God-forsaken aadministration to contend with..........ARGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[hector459]

31. Right out of the gate, blaming Syria...no proof, no reason?

they weren't this quick to accept the Gannon story. When the deal goes down I bet this is another black-bag job by either the US CIA or Israeli Mossad or IDF. ONce again, a heretofore UNKNOWN group claims responsibility. You know, after showing those identical photos and claiming them to be first picture of Iran's nuclear plant and next N. Korea's nuclear plant, how can anyone belive CNN about anything?

They are just not a credible news source.

[6th Borough]

46. Blmae every single tragedy in the ME on Isreal...

:eyes:

[MaineDem]

11. BBC Link: Car bomb kills former Lebanese PM

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4263893.stm

Former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has been killed in a car bomb explosion in central Beirut.

Tourism Minister Farid Khazen confirmed the death several hours after the blast at about 1000 GMT.

The explosion, which reports say killed about nine people, caused widespread damage and left about 20 cars ablaze.

[Gman]

13. How many times a week do we see this headline first thing

in the morning?

[allemand]

15. Assad:Syria stands by Lebanon, offers its condolences to the Hariri family

15:45 Syria condemns killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Al-Hariri as an `act of terrorism`
15:36 Syrian President Assad: Syria stands by Lebanon, offers its condolences to the Hariri family
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/ShTickers.html


Syria's President Bashar Assad called the attack "a horrible criminal act," according to Al-Jazeera television.
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050214/ap_on_re_mi_ea/lebanon_explosion_23

"Syria regards this as an act of terrorism, a crime that seeks to destabilise" Lebanon, Syrian Information Minister Mahdi Dakhl-Allah told Reuters by telephone.

"Syria expresses its support and backing for Lebanon," said Dakhl-Allah, whose country keeps about 14,000 troops in Lebanon under a bilateral arrangement with Beirut.

He told Al Jazeera television it was a "black day" for Syria, Lebanon and all Arabs.

"He was a distinguished popular Lebanese leader who fought for Lebanon's growth, prosperity and independence," Dakhl-Allah said. "It's a criminal, terrorist act that aims to shake Lebanon's stability and kill as many Lebanese as possible."
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/B325630.htm


At least nine other people killed in blast along city's seafront boulevard; possible that individuals linked to Syria were behind bomb.
http://www.haaretz.com/

One possibility is that sources close to Syria, which has at least 14,000 soldiers stationed in Lebanon, were responsible for the blast.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/540148.html


Interesting background story:

Feb. 13, 2005 2:28
Lahoud accuses US of interference

Lebanese President Emile Lahoud made an unprecedented attack on a senior US State Department official Friday, accusing him of taking sides in the country's internal debates and trying to give lessons in democracy. <...> Lahoud's sharp rebuke underlined the tension between Lebanon and the US over a UN Security Council resolution passed in September 2004 demanding that Syria withdraw its troops from Lebanon. It also highlighted the political sensitivities within Lebanon as it approaches parliamentary elections in April and May in which the call for a Syrian withdrawal will be a major issue.

Lahoud's pro-Syrian government opposes a withdrawal whereas opposition parties say Syria should pull out its 14,000 troops. The two sides are currently arguing over a draft electoral law which would redefine voting districts.

The draft, which parliament is expected to debate late this month, divides the country into small electoral districts, which favors the opposition. But the pro-Syrian camp is pushing for larger electoral areas.

Satterfield, a former US ambassador to Beirut, spoke on a popular call-in show that was broadcast on Thursday night by the private Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. television. In comments translated into Arabic, he urged Lebanon to implement the September UN resolution demanding that Syria withdraw its forces and stop interfering in Lebanon.

More:
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1108178566050

[allemand]

18. Al Jazeera: group called "al-Nasir and Jihad" claims responsibility

Aljazeera's office in Beirut received a phone call from a person claiming to be speaking on behalf of a group called al-Nasir and Jihad Group in al-Sham countries (Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine).

The caller said the group has "announced carrying out the fair penalty against the infidel agent Rafiq al-Hariri", adding that it was a "martyrdom operation" whose details would be announced later.

"We have never heard about this group before," Aljazeera's correspondent said. "The person is not a native-Arabic speaker. He was speaking Arabic with a foreign accent."

The situation is very tense in Beirut, the correspondent said. "Demonstrations have been staged in Beirut streets, particularly al-Hamra Street," he said. "Slogans have been chanted in support of al-Hariri," he added.

More:
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/1C00C5D5-80DD-4550-A801-DD991E0DB8E1.htm

[KoKo]

20. Think "al US CIA."......n/t

[AFSCME girl]

22. Yep! n/t

[allemand]

24. France calls for an international inquiry after Beirut blast

FRANCE CALLS FOR INTERNATIONAL INQUIRY AFTER BEIRUT BLAST
Received Monday, 14 February 2005 15:17:00 GMT

PARIS, Feb 14 (AFP) - France on Monday called for an international inquiry into a deadly blast in Beirut that claimed the life of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri, President Jacques Chirac's office said in a statement.
    "France strongly condemns this crime. It asks that an international inquiry be launched without delay to determine the circumstances of this tragedy and who is responsible," Chirac's office said.
    "France, like the entire international community, will closely follow the unfolding of this situation," it added.
    "France pays tribute to the man who personified the unshakeable willingness to pursue independence, freedom and democracy in Lebanon," the statement said, adding that Chirac sent his condolences to Hariri's family.
http://www.ttc.org/200502141517.j1efhim29061.htm

[hector459]

25. Why does this sound like an Israeli Mossad special ops to me?

Israel wants in another war either with Syria or Iran. It looks like Iran may not be panning out the way they want it to go. But I am mighty suspicious about this bombing.

[allemand]

26. Reuters: Hezbollah calls killing of ex-Lebanese PM `a heinous crime

18:05 Hezbollah calls killing of ex-Lebanese PM `a heinous crime and cowardly act that targets Lebanon`s stability`
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/ShTickers.html

"Hezbollah strongly condemns this criminal act and calls for uncovering the culprits and their objectives." Statement issued by Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/14/beirut.reaction/

[yinkaafrica]

32. Statement issued by sharon: "Me likey!"

War forever.

[Colorado Blue]

35. NOT. Grow up. Blaming Israel and Sharon and the Mossad

for this, at a time when peace is becoming a real possibility for Israel and Palestine, is irresponsible. It also betrays a lack of knowledge and an understanding of the political and religious and tribal underpinnings of the region.

Please - there really are fundamentalist Jihadists, groups within the Arab world who seek political change, tribal leaders with grudges against other tribal groups, people with religious bones to pick, and other factions who really do blow stuff up. The fabric of the Middle East is extremely complex and there are many tribal, religious and political factors at work here.

You do ALL the people of the Middle East a disservice in this way. Lebanon is a true crossroads and any number of groups or disgruntled individuals could have set off this bomb. There are family feuds in the region that have been going on for 900 years. There are European and American interests in the region. There are the nationalist interests of Turkey, Syria and Israel - immediate neighbors of Lebanon.

Just because you do not like Sharon, or Israel, or CNN, or Bush, does NOT mean THEY DID IT. Being a Democrat means, I think, waiting to find out what is going on THEN making a judgement. We're in a time of increased racial tension and bigotry and this kind of knee-jerk reaction really doesn't help matters.

OK, end of rant.

[underthedome]

48. No kidding, it makes a lot of people look like wackos here n/t

[umtalal]

27. Former PM Hariri dies in Beirut blast

Former PM Hariri dies in Beirut blast


Monday 14 February 2005, 18:08 Makka Time, 15:08 GMT
A car bomb has killed at least nine people, including former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq al-Hariri, on Beirut's seafront, Lebanese police said.


Al-Hariri's motorcade was blown up on Monday as it passed along an exclusive section of the city's waterfront Corniche.

The explosion close to the St George Hotel gouged a deep crater out of the road, ripped facades from luxury buildings and left half a dozen cars ablaze on streets carpeted with rubble.

Lebanon's official news agency ANI said initially that Hariri was rushed to hospital with major injuries. Staff at the American University hospital said he was admitted to intensive care there but died shortly afterwards

more...

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/1C00C5D5-80DD-4550-A801-DD991E0DB8E1.htm

Related News:
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L14396849.htm
Chirac urges international probe into Hariri death
14 Feb 2005 15:02:06 GMT

Source: Reuters

PARIS, Feb 14 (Reuters) - French President Jacques Chirac called for an international inquiry into the car bomb attack which killed Lebanon's former prime minister, Rafik al-Hariri, in Beirut on Monday.

[umtalal]

29. Attack on Hariri condemned

http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/14/beirut.reaction/

[allemand]

28. Al Jazeera: Islamist Group Says Killed Hariri for Saudi Ties

Islamist Group Says Killed Hariri for Saudi Ties - TV

DUBAI (Reuters) - An unknown Islamist group claimed responsibility for the killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri on Monday, in a video tape aired on Al Jazeera television.

"For the sake of our Mujahideen brothers in Saudi Arabia ... we decided to implement the just execution of those who support this regime," a bearded man said on the tape. He sat in front of a black flag carrying the name "Group for Victory and Holy War in the Levant."

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20050214/wl_nm/lebanon_blast_dc_14

[hector459]

30. A heretofore unknown Islamist group? sounds fishy to me.

And it makes no sense.

[allemand]

33. Islamists could have an interest in taking down the second secular regime

in the region (Syria) with help from the US by provoking a conflict over Lebanon. It worked so well in Iraq...

It would make perfect sense, but it's also too early to draw any conclusions.

On edit:

According to a French translation of the statement aired by al Jazeera, the group wanted to take revenge for al Qaeda members killed recently by security forces in Saudi Arabia:

«Pour venger nos frères moudjahidine dans le pays des deux Haramaïn (les deux saintes mosquées à La Mecque et à Médine, en Arabie saoudite), qui ont été tués par les forces de sécurité du régime saoudien, nous avons décidé d’infliger le châtiment équitable à l’agent et au vil instrument de ce régime en grande Syrie », dit le jeune homme.

More (in French):
http://www.lalibre.be/article.phtml?id=10&subid=83&art_id=206354

[allemand]

44. Apparently, the man who appeared in the Jazeera video has been identified

"Lebanese security forces said on Monday they had stormed the Beirut home of a man they identified as a Palestinian who appeared in a video claiming responsibility for the killing of a former Lebanese prime minister.

A Lebanese security source said Ahmad Abul Adif was not in the house. He had earlier appeared in a video aired by Aljazeera claiming responsibility for the killing of al-Hariri."
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/C8BC39E6-CEF1-4BA2-9E01-82DDEE1A91C5.htm

[Name removed]

38. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[DemonFighterLives]

34. He was becoming W's man on the scene

He touched W that explains it.

[allemand]

36. Hi-tech armoured convoy no match for Beirut bomb

14 Feb 2005 16:58:06 GMT
Source: Reuters

By Lucy Fielder

BEIRUT, Feb 14 (Reuters) - The powerfully armed motorcade of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri was no match for the car bomb that gouged a massive blackened crater into Beirut's gleaming Corniche.

A blast so huge it blew out windows more than one kilometre away ripped apart the Mercedes vehicles like toys and engulfed the car Hariri was driving in fierce flames. (...)

So advanced was the bomb, security sources said, that it defeated jamming equipment so hi-tech that Hariri's passing convoy would interfere with cell phones and televisions.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L14373869.htm


This leads to speculation by al Jazeera that a foreign agency was involved:

Who killed al-Hariri?
By Christian Henderson

Monday 14 February 2005, 20:43 Makka Time, 17:43 GMT  

Many commentators said Syria would likely be accused of being behind the attack but they questioned if Damascus had anything to gain from having a hand in killing Hariri.

"What exactly would the Syrians gain from this? Precisely because most people would say that this is the Syrians who have done this. It doesn't make any sense," Rime Allaf, Middle East analyst at the Royal Institute for International Affairs in London, UK, said. (...)

Agency hand?

Although a previously unheard of outfit calling itself al-Nasir and Jihad Group in al-Sham claimed responsibility for al-Hariri's assassination, commentators said the magnitude of the blast suggested an intelligence agency was behind the explosion rather than a small group.

Reuters reported security sources as saying the explosive device was sophisticated enough to evade jamming equipment so hi-tech that al-Hariri's passing convoy would interfere with cellphones and televisions.

More:
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/AA19EA2C-3683-4980-BFC6-666C15B07D41.htm

There is another possibility, however: I imagine that a suicide bomber would be sufficient to "evade jamming equipment".

And is it really true that "the magnitude of the blast suggested an intelligence agency was behind the explosion rather than a small group"?
We have seen what Islamist groups are capable of (Bali, Riyadh, Istanbul, Madrid, etc.).

The statement by the the unknown group claims that it was a suicide attack:

Unknown Islamic group claims Hariri slaying
By UNITED PRESS INTERNATIONAL
Published February 14, 2005

The claim by the Organization of Nasrat and Jihad in Bilad Sham was made in a videotape broadcast on al-Jazeera. The tape showed a turbaned, bearded man reading from a statement.
    
 He identified the suicide bomber as Ahmed Abu Adas and said he carried out the attack because Hariri "is an agent of the Saudi regime."
    
 "In revenge for the mujahedin killed by the forces of the Saudi regime, we have decided to punish the agent of that regime, Rafik Hariri, in a spectacular suicide operation ... the first of many suicide attacks to come," he said.

http://www.wpherald.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20050214-011522-5302r

[allemand]

42. Analysis: sophisticated attempt to create chaos

The Times:

"What is clear, though, is that the method of assassination is too sophisticated for any one local group in Lebanon.

“The sophistication and type of the explosives and the inside knowledge of his route all confirm that an outside power over and beyond Lebanon is involved in his assassination,” a Beirut security analyst said. (...)

Hariri’s motorcade and limousines are known to be equipped with state-of-the-art radar and jamming devices that generally block mobile phones and devices within a 500-metre radius to prevent assassination attempts by radio-controlled bombs.

The security analyst insists that “whoever designed the explosives had overcome Hariri’s own sophisticated devices”. This pointed to  technological knowledge that suggested “the involvement of bigger powers on the outside” of Lebanon."

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1484636,00.html


Arguments for the involvement of "an outside power":

- type of the explosives

Well, we don't know yet, but maybe the "security analist" has inside knowledge.

- inside knowledge of his route

Indeed, this is the best argument yet for the involvement of a foreign intelligence service. On the other hand, the Corniche isn't such an unusual route for a politician's motorcade.

- "state-of-the-art radar and jamming devices" "block mobile phones and devices within a 500-metre radius to prevent assassination attempts by radio-controlled bombs".

Yes, but they don't block suicide bombers.

[bemildred]

37. Fending off peace once again, I see:

Assad ready to comply with Resolution 1559

This story got little attention at the time. The import is that Assad
is willing to withdraw the rest of his troops from Lebanon (under certain
conditions, of course).

Syrian President Bashar Assad is ready to comply with UN Security Council Resolution 1559, according to a European envoy in Damscus, but the country's foreign minister warned the demand was increasing tension in the region.

European Union Middle East Envoy Marc Otte who is on an official visit to Syria, said: "The main message is that Syria is respectful of international law and will cooperate with the UN to see how to implement it."

Otte also said Assad was also willing to resume negotiations with Israel, adding the EU was "ready to play a role in encouraging the parties to move ahead."

Meanwhile, UN Special Envoy Terje Roed-Larsen, who is also on an official visit to Syria, was told by the country's Foreign Minister Farouk Sharaa that 1559 had led to increased tension in the region.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=12485

[Colorado Blue]

40. Assad may be willing to comply but that doesn't mean...

all the factions in Syria - tribal, familial, religious and political - are willing to do so.

The Middle Eastern nation-states are defined by arbitrary borders that by no means reflect the diversity or wishes of the people who live within them.

So Assad may wish to do thus and such but it doesn't mean all the citizens of Syria share that desire. Don't forget he is essentially a dictator and has enemies who might wish to destablize him and undercut his desires. In fact I guarantee he does.

One faction that I haven't seen mentioned in relation to Lebanon: the Christians. They at one time had great power and were right-wing politically. The earlier war focused on their conflict with more socialistic and/or religious Muslims.

Lebanon is complicated.

[bemildred]

41. No shit? nt

[allemand]

39. Demonstrators accuse Syria of killing Hariri

14 Feb 2005 18:31:47 GMT
Source: Reuters

BEIRUT, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Demonstrators accused Syria of plotting the killing of Lebanon's former prime minister and set ablaze a picture of Syria's president outside a Beirut office of the Lebanese wing of Syria's ruling party on Monday.

Witnesses said dozens of demonstrators holding pictures of Rafik al-Hariri, killed by a car bomb on Monday, set ablaze tyres and a picture of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad at a Baath Party office in Lebanon. They pelted the building with stones.

"There is no God but God and Syria is the enemy of God," more demonstrators chanted outside Hariri's Beirut house.

Demonstrators also blocked a road to Syria in northern Lebanon with burning tyres, witnesses said.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L14531874.htm

[allemand]

43. U.S. Warns of U.N. Penalties After Lebanon Killing

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Monday it would consult with U.N. Security Council members about taking punitive measures against those responsible for the killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri, and to push for an end to Syrian occupation.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan stopped short of linking Syria with the car bomb (...). But in a thinly veiled warning to Damascus, McClellan said: "The United States will consult with other governments in the region and on the Security Council today about measures that can be taken to punish those responsible for this terrorist attack, to end the use of violence and intimidation against the Lebanese people and to restore Lebanon's independence, sovereignty and democracy by freeing it from foreign occupation." (...)

The Bush administration has been warning Syria for months that it may face new sanctions for allegedly supporting Palestinian militants and allowing money and arms to flow to insurgents in Iraq (news - web .

Last week the State Department called in Syria's ambassador, a sign a decision may be near.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20050214/ts_nm/lebanon_blast_bush_dc_3

Here we go again. It doesn't really matter who was behind the atrocity, they just use it for political gain.

[allemand]

45. Lebanon security storm Hariri bomb claimer's home

BEIRUT, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Lebanese security forces on Monday stormed the Beirut home of a man they identified as a Palestinian who appeared in a video claiming responsibility for the killing of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik al-Hariri.

A Lebanese security forces statement said Ahmed Tayseer Abu Adas was not in the house. He had earlier appeared in a video aired by Al Jazeera claiming responsibility killing Hariri and calling him a Saudi agent.

Authorities were investigating whether he had blown himself up in the car bombing that killed Hariri or whether he was an accomplice in plotting the attack, the statement said.

"Computer equipment and tapes were seized from his house and some documents were confiscated for investigation," it said. Early investigations had shown he was a member of an Islamic school of thought known as Wahhabism -- an austere form of Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L14681185.htm

If I remember correctly, Osama bin Laden mentioned Lebanon in his "October surprise" message.

In the tape now aired on al Jazeera Ahmed Tayseer Abu Adas said that the attack was "in revenge for the pious martyrs killed by security forces of the Saudi regime" and he also "used a religious term for Saudi Arabia often used by al Qaeda militants" ("the country of al-Haramain").

[allemand]

47. Lebanese Army On Alert After Killing

"In a statement, military chiefs said: "The army leadership announced a general alert for all units of the Lebanese army. "Likewise, the fighting readiness was raised to the greatest degree."

The move will fuel fears that Lebanon's stability could be threatened by the dramatic events of the last 24 hours.

Lebanese opposition figures, including Druze chief Walid Jumblatt and Christian ex-President Amin Gemayel, blamed Syrian and Lebanese authorities for Hariri's death and called on the government to resign.

A previously unknown Islamist group said in a video aired by Al Jazeera television it had carried out a suicide attack against Hariri because he supported the Saudi government."

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/050214/140/fch1a.html

Ahmed Tayseer Abu Adas, claiming responsibility for the killing of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik al-Hariri:

http://www.spiegel.de/img/0,1020,436621,00.jpg


Interesting in this context:

Map of Future Al-Qaeda Operations
By SITE Institute
February 14, 2005

A message posted to a leading al-Qaeda-frequented Jihadist message board on February 12, 2005, purports to answer the questions: “What is the future of al-Qaeda? And what will the upcoming operations be?” In answering these questions the message claims to lay out a future “map of the operations against America and its interests,” with coverage of the following categories:

(...)

Targeting America’s allies through assassinations: The message warns: “As for America’s allies, they will be targeted by the assassination of the heads of the regimes, security officers, a number of presidents, and kings; this is in addition to the assassination of security officials such as intelligence officers who will be forming in their country a kind of a mafia….” The further explains that “future assassinations will serve political and strategic goals that aim at striking the American plan, by targeting individuals that America relies on for the success of this plan. The list of targeted regimes includes the regimes of Al-Saud in the Arabian Peninsula, Mubarak in Egypt, and the Jordanian regime, in addition to collaborators of the Americans in Iraq such as al-Rafida and others.” The further points out: “Also, with the targeting of intelligence officers, America will lose an important source of information, in addition to the protection provided by those individuals to its points of interest in the region.”

http://siteinstitute.org/bin/articles.cgi?ID=publications19805&Category=publications&Subcategory=0