US to help in Lebanon bomb investigation
BBC News online - 21 October 2012
Wissam al-Hassan was buried after being killed by a car bomb in east Beirut
The
US says it will help with the investigation into a bomb that killed the
head of Lebanon's internal intelligence, a US spokeswoman says.
Mrs Clinton spoke to Mr Mikati by phone after the funeral of Wissam al-Hassan, the security official killed on Friday.
Clashes erupted after the funeral, as protesters called on Mr Mikati to quit.
Police fired warning shots and tear gas as some demonstrators tried to storm the government offices in the Lebanese capital, Beirut.
There were reports of further violence in southern and western Beirut overnight.
Opposition figures have blamed neighbouring Syria for the attack, protesting against Syria and its Lebanese allies amid fears the Syrian conflict could spill over.
A majority within Lebanon's government support the Syrian regime.
Mr Hassan, 47, was close to the 14 March opposition and the Hariri family, part of the anti-Syrian opposition.
The Syrian government condemned the attack, which also killed one of Mr Hassan's bodyguards and a woman nearby.
Lebanon's religious communities are divided between those who support the Syrian government - including many Shias - and those mostly from the Sunni community who back the rebels.
Wissam al-Hassan
- Head of the intelligence branch of Lebanon's Internal Security Forces
- Sunni Muslim born in the northern city of Tripoli in 1965
- Responsible for the security of former PM Rafik Hariri
- Viewed as being close to the Hariris and the opposition 14 March coalition
- Responsible for the August arrest of pro-Syrian politician and ex-information minister Michel Samaha
On Sunday, Mrs Clinton stressed
"the United States' firm commitment to Lebanon's stability,
independence, sovereignty and security," State Department spokesperson
Victoria Nuland said in a statement.
Mr Hassan led an investigation into the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, which implicated Damascus.
He also recently organised the arrest of a former minister accused of planning a Syrian-sponsored bombing campaign in Lebanon.
Syrian troops withdrew from Lebanon in 2005 after a 29-year-long presence, in the wake of Mr Hariri's killing.
But the BBC's Wyre Davies reports that there are concerns in Beirut that Damascus is able to reach into Lebanese society both directly and through its allies.
Mr Hassan was buried next to Mr Hariri on Sunday.
Many mourners waved the light blue flag of the Sunni-based opposition Future Party, while others carried Lebanon's national flag.
Mr Mikati says he offered to resign after the attack, but accepted a request from President Michel Suleiman to stay on in order to avoid a power vacuum.
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Labels: Conflict, Crime, Crisis Politics, Lebanon, United States
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