Family of assassinated ex-Lebanese minister Chatah mourn
- 10 years ago
The family of assassinated former Lebanese minister Mohamad Chatah are mourning his death in a bombing on Friday.
He was killed in his car while driving through Beirut on Friday morning.
One of his political allies is blaming Hezbollah for the blast, but the Shi’ite goup have condemned the killing as a ‘horrible crime’.
Five other people died and around 71 were injured.
It is the lastest in a series of sectarian bombings against both Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims over the past year.
Chatah was a critic of Hezbollah and Syrian President Basher al-Assad. Lebanon has been drawn into Syria’s civil war.
Locals say it is an attempt to fire up hatred.
“What is sure is that the intention is to stir up senseless conflict, sectarian strife, that’s what the aim is. Look at how it is, you see they target a Shi’ite area one day, then another day somewhere … to cause hatred,” said one man in Beirut.
“They want to ruin the economy and increase the tension in the country,” added another man.
The blast tore through the chic city centre business and hotel district on Friday morning.
Investigators say the explosion was caused by a device weighing 60kg.
He was killed in his car while driving through Beirut on Friday morning.
One of his political allies is blaming Hezbollah for the blast, but the Shi’ite goup have condemned the killing as a ‘horrible crime’.
Five other people died and around 71 were injured.
It is the lastest in a series of sectarian bombings against both Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims over the past year.
Chatah was a critic of Hezbollah and Syrian President Basher al-Assad. Lebanon has been drawn into Syria’s civil war.
Locals say it is an attempt to fire up hatred.
“What is sure is that the intention is to stir up senseless conflict, sectarian strife, that’s what the aim is. Look at how it is, you see they target a Shi’ite area one day, then another day somewhere … to cause hatred,” said one man in Beirut.
“They want to ruin the economy and increase the tension in the country,” added another man.
The blast tore through the chic city centre business and hotel district on Friday morning.
Investigators say the explosion was caused by a device weighing 60kg.