Car bomb hits centre of Beirut

October 21, 2012

On Friday, an explosion in, in the mainly Christian part of , killed three and injured more than eighty in a car bomb attack in the Lebanese capital Beirut, including senior Lebanese intelligence official.

The bomb also destroyed several cars and badly damaged a multistory building. Witnesses said it could be heard several kilometers away. The area is home to the headquarters of the Christian group.

Although the target of the attack is unclear, it comes at a time of heightened tensions in Lebanon because of the. The leader of Kataeb, which is also known as the Phalange, Sami al-Gemayel is a strong opponent of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. He said: "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."