Car bomb hits a nerve
BEIRUT— Lebanese protesters erected flaming roadblocks and gunmen roamed the streets Saturday in a city on edge after the assassination of a top security official in a powerful car bomb the prime minister linked to the civilwar in neighboring Syria.
The crisis raised a terrifying specter for Lebanese who fear their country could easily plunge back into cycles of violence and reprisal that have haunted it for decades.
Friday’s blast in the heart of Beirut’s Christian area killed eight people, including the country’s intelligence chief, Brig. Gen. Wissam al- Hassan. It was the deadliest bombing in Beirut in four years, shattering the country’s uneasy calm.
The government declared a national day of mourning for the victims Saturday, but protesters burned tires and set up roadblocks in anger.
Sharbal Abdo, who lives in the neighborhood where the bomb went off, brought his 6- year- old son, Chris, and 12- yearold daughter, Jane, to see the destruction Saturday.
“They were very afraid yesterday,” he said. “They need to face this situation. It may be their future.”
Lebanese PrimeMinister NajibMikati on Saturday linked the bombing to al- Hassan’s high- profile investigation this summer that uncovered what authorities called a plot by Syria to provoke chaos in Lebanon with bombings and assassinations.
Mikati, who opponents believe is too close to Syria and the Shiite militant group Hezbollah, offered to resign after the bombing, but was asked by PresidentMichel Suleiman to stay.
Al- Hassan’s probe led to the arrest of former InformationMinister Michel Samaha, one of Assad’s most loyal allies in Lebanon. Samaha, who is in custody, is accused of plotting a wave of attacks in Lebanon at Syria’s behest.
Samaha’s arrest was an embarrassing blow to Syria, which has long acted with impunity in Lebanon.
The Syrian unrest has already enflamed tensions here. Many of Lebanon’s SunniMuslims have backed Syria’s mainly Sunni rebels, while Shiite Muslims have tended to backAssad. Al- Hassan was a Sunniwhose stanceswere widely seen to oppose Syria andHezbollah.