Car Bomb Kills 3, Hurts Dozens in Hermel, 'al-Nusra in Lebanon' Claims Attack
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
A car bombing targeted on Thursday the eastern town of Hermel, a Hizbullah stronghold, killing at least three people and wounding more than 26, in an attack claimed by an apparent al-Nusra Front offshoot.
The explosion ripped through Hermel's main square where the Serail is located. Hermel is a predominantly Shiite town and lies near the Lebanon-Syria border.
A group calling itself “al-Nusra Front in Lebanon” claimed responsibility for the attack in a Twitter message.
“With the help of God, the bastion of Iran's party (Hizbullah) in Hermel has been rocked by a martyrdom operation carried out by one of the 'lions' of al-Nusra Front in Lebanon, in response to the party's crimes against the women and children of the Sunni community in Syria,” the tweet said.
The group called on Sunnis across Lebanon to “close their ranks to confront the Party of Satan (Hizbullah).”
The alleged Nusra offshoot described Hizbullah as “foolish and coward.”
“It is foolish in its security evaluations and coward for placing its bases in civilian areas,” it added.
Al-Nusra Front is the main rebel group fighting to topple the Assad regime. It is al-Qaida's arm in Syria and is listed by the United States as a terrorist organization.
It is not clear whether al-Nusra Front in Lebanon has links to the Syrian rebel group.
The health ministry said human remains were found near the site of the blast.
Red Cross Operations Director George Kettaneh said some of the wounded were in serious condition and would be taken to hospitals in the eastern city of Zahle.
Reports said the bombing was caused by a suicide bomber after witnesses saw human remains in the mangled car, a black Kia four-wheeler, which was parked near the Canadian Bank.
The bank's manager is among the dead, they said.
Al-Jadeed TV reported that the suicide bomber was wearing an explosives belt and the car was loaded with explosives.
The army issued a statement saying three people were killed and several others were wounded in the bombing. It did not confirm whether the attack was a suicide bombing.
In another statement issued in the evening, the army said the blast resulted from around 30 kilograms of explosives that were placed in a Kia SUV carrying a fake license plate with the number 266271/M.
Caretaker Health Minister Ali Hassan Khalil asked the hospitals in the eastern Bekaa region to treat the injured at the expense of the ministry.
Hermel's mayor, Sobhi Saqr, told Hizbullah's al-Manar TV that the attack occurred as students were on their way to schools and while employees were going to work.
"It was a very big blast," Saqr said.
Later, State Commissioner to the Military Court Judge Saqr Saqr ordered security forces to carry out the preliminary investigations in Hermel blast and tasked Judge Kamal Nassar to inspect the site of the explosion.
The army command urged citizens not to gather in the targeted area to avoid another bombing and facilitate the task of the military and the specialized agencies.
Earlier this month, a suicide car bombing shook the district of Haret Hreik in Beirut's southern suburbs.
That bombing was the fourth attack in Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hizbullah bastion, since the party announced it was fighting in Syria.
As well as the Iranian embassy suicide attacks in November, the southern suburbs also suffered an August 15 bombing and a blast earlier the same month.
16 January 2014, 09:33
1219
Hermel is the center of HA military activities and the nest of terror.
16 January 2014, 09:34
1216
You can kiss goodbye to Hermel's International Shopping Festival and Hermel's skiing season:(
16 January 2014, 11:52
1411
@Naharnet: You keep mowaten's sectarian comments who calls people "goat" lovers but you delete a normal political opinion. Shame on you!
16 January 2014, 12:02
169
I agree @eagle! My comments were also deleted for no reason. The Jihadist reporting brigade of mowaten and Co. are in full action. I was merely saying Hermel's International Shopping Festival and Ski season will surely be over as a result of this attack.
16 January 2014, 12:32
1312
eagledawn: since when is backwardism, obscurantism, and terrorism a sect?
do you consider the people i aimed my comment at (those who send cowardly random bombs) are an entire sect? i see them as a narrow group of like-minded lunatics, but if YOU think this represents an entire sect, by all means, let me know.
16 January 2014, 15:54
98
mowaten at the same time denies he was being sectarian while also making sectarian undertones in the very same post.
FYI mowaten it is not wrong to say that the suicide bombers are sectarian sunni extremists. this is a fact. when it becomes wrong is when you accuse the entire sunni sect of supporting their actions or saying that FM is funding or providing cover for these actions.
16 January 2014, 16:27
128
again, you guys keep fantasizing that i'm accusing the entire sunni sect, but i'm tired of explaining you the difference between being anti-terrorist & anti-takfiri, and being anti-sunni.
from now on either show me quotes where i said anything about sunnis in general, or go play elsewhere.
16 January 2014, 09:45
1315
in no way my following comment is an approval for this bombing or any other one.
that clarified, my comment is as follows:
the shia community is going to pay dearly and for a long while for the actions of hizbushaitan.
hizbushaitan crimes will reflect on the shia community badly, although it is not their fault some terrorist militia killed, murdered, kidnapped, terrorized, bombed, ... the Lebanese and the Syrian people.
16 January 2014, 10:03
1410
My people are the just and innocent and the others are evil and cruel..it's mentalities like yours that make the situation hopeless.
You need to give it a bit more thought and consider the interests of others. It's not by insulting a third of the nation that you will get anywhere. Grow up ya Geha!
16 January 2014, 11:10
1510
i read and read again geha, but i couldnt find a single hint of you condemning those terrorist attacks. i guess in your saudi mentality, this kind of behavior is just normal
16 January 2014, 10:06
1211
A bombing anywhere in Lebanon against any sect is a crime against Lebanon itself ... These bombings no matter the victims hurt all of Lebanon.
Despite the "disclaimers" of those opposed to the Shia in general and HA specifically there is no doubt of the schadenfreude displayed here.
16 January 2014, 10:23
1411
mckinl
Yes a bombing against any community is an attack against Lebanon.
nevertheless, we need to understand why these bombings are happening against this particular community.
the reasons behind attacks against shia communities is due to hizbushaitan continuous terrorist activities in Lebanon and Syria mainly.
16 January 2014, 11:50
139
Naharnet is deleting comments for no reason!. I am sure flamethrower and his aliases are reporting people for no reason. I will repost:
HA is killing innocent civilians in Syria, bombing their villages, and executing unarmed civilians by the truckload. Hasan Nasrallah said it is war. Where should the people HA is fighting and killing respond? Does HA have fixed points of army troops, fixed bases, fixed barracks... The answer is NO. Hence, this is the response. Now, if Naharnet cannot tolerate comments such as this and delete them then kiss democracy goodbye!
16 January 2014, 10:30
1214
Those who are coming to the defense of HA I say this: Yes, innocent civilians should never be targeted. Your Hizb is in Syria killing civilians, bombing villages and cities, and executing unarmed civilians. How do you expect HA enemies to retaliate and in what form? Are there any fixed HA targets, military barracks, or fixed concentration points for HA enemies to target. Your Sayyed said this is war. A war has 2 sides fighting. Just think where should the other side fighting HA fight HA and how?
No one is for war. No one is for targeting civilians on both sides. Shouldn't your Hizb have thought about the consequences of its actions earlier. Maybe, your arrogance and that of your Hizb never took that into consideration.
Thank you!
16 January 2014, 10:16
1310
every attack in HA strongholds is legitimit..its like every jew in israhell has a military background, so does the hizb. they support them in every way to so enjoy the bombs.
16 January 2014, 11:15
811
openely HA said am in syria fighting , why whoever put the car bomb and use intiharieh
do not attack and destroy hizb fighters on the battlefield in syria
16 January 2014, 12:34
139
Hanoun: because they are cowards.
ice-boy, they're not scoring anything, mainly just running home.
16 January 2014, 12:41
118
HA is Obviously trying to remove attention away from the tribunal and place it back on Lebanon with this bombing next they'll probably try and start a war with Israel even if they have their fighters in Syria and now with the tribunal working they simply have nothing left to loose anymore.
16 January 2014, 12:48
1112
ur khomeynist boyfriends went first to qusayr, homs, ect...
16 January 2014, 12:54
1011
Bashar trying to divert attention again from STL, also a message to all after sami's and geagea's declarations...
They'll probably try to put the blame on Arsal again, but Arsal still standing...
16 January 2014, 13:25
109
defo, and it helps keep shias in line, so none of them will dare to question their JIHADI DUTY in Syria...
16 January 2014, 13:49
93
these bombers' ideology allows them to bomb and kill anyone who's not them. We can never know when they will start targeting ANY area. We're all targets eventually.
16 January 2014, 16:01
98
no one is applauding them. your people on the other hand, applauded HA invasion of Homs and destruction of Qusayr.
16 January 2014, 19:38
75
@josephirani: You are a man of integrity, impartial, and deliberate. Please, never change my friend. I know you come here (you mentioned to me before) to share views and not to make judgements.
16 January 2014, 21:00
107
First, I'm not PM, I'm PS.
Why r u callig me sick? I wrote an olfactive description of the foto. It's wat u should expect from the web 3.0 ! ! !
I didn't write anything like ' a delicious smell' or anything reprehensible.
U've got something against me, u r so intolerant! R u judging me? R u sinning by being judgemental? ;(
I don't need a shrink, but u should consider 1 for urself..... friendly advice.
16 January 2014, 22:34
31
When General Michel Aoun was in France whenever he had a major TV sit down interview Hezbollah attacked Israeli targets, the next morning's front page news was about the Israeli retaliation and any Lebanese casualties rather than what Aoun said.
16 January 2014, 23:03
11
As long as Iran secures its sovereignty in the region, the rest are "barghash".
16 January 2014, 23:30
99
Israelis and shias r the same. They r not civilians. The Israhellis r all soldiers, shias r all jihadists. Their victims in syria understood this well.
16 January 2014, 23:47
88
Lies, lies,and more lies. The protector of Christians in iraq was sunni Saddam Hussein al Tikriti. When he was ousted by the USA, and Shiite iraq replaced him in 2003, the Christians were massacred by shiite jihadists and many emigrated to the US, it was the bush master plan.
17 January 2014, 00:08
67
The worst type of human is the hypocrite.
The Shia have become munafikeen.
All these suicide bombings are being done by them and being pinned on the Sunni community.
17 January 2014, 02:06
02
i dont understand the way people think,many people are happy because is a hizbulla strong hold but all the people thay die are inocent students ,working people and most important all of them are libanese and the things that happen are destroying our country and the future of our children.they destroyed the tourism and the country and the worst is that they keep talking about if you are sunni or shia when they blow themselves up do you think they care whay are you.
17 January 2014, 05:43
31
I am fine frank. No it was not appropriate. Stay above all this. You are cool.
