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Bomb tears through christian heartland of lebanon Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
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Bomb Kills Three in Lebanon's Christian Heartland
Wed Mar 23, 2005 11:55 AM ET
By Nadim Ladki
BEIRUT (Reuters) - A powerful bomb tore through a shopping mall in the anti-Syrian Christian heartland north of Beirut on Wednesday, killing three Asian workers and bringing Lebanon closer to chaos weeks before general elections.
French President Jacques Chirac urged Syria to withdraw its troops from Lebanon as soon as possible and U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he expected the Syrians to leave before the elections, due in May.
The explosion, the second in a Christian area in five days, raised tension in a nation already buffeted by a political storm set off by the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri.
Christian opposition leaders blamed Lebanon's Syrian-backed security agencies for the blasts, underlining opposition demands for the dismissal of security chiefs and an international investigation into Hariri's Feb. 14 assassination.
"It has become clear to everyone that the security regime and its collaborators are responsible for terrorizing the people that united behind the demands of the opposition," a statement issued at the end of a Christian opposition meeting read.
Syrian-backed President Emile Lahoud said he had ordered an investigation into the latest blast, at a mall in the wealthy coastal area of Kaslik, 20 km (12 miles) north of Beirut.
Lahoud said the attack aimed to drive Lebanon into "chaos and fear" and renewed calls for talks between opposition and loyalist politicians "as the only means to break the current deadlock and bridge all differences."
Opposition leaders had rejected Lahoud's previous invitation for talks on Saturday, after a blast in a Christian suburb of eastern Beirut wounded 11 people.
The Kaslik blast blew out walls and brought down the roof of the mall. Rescuers found a third body identified as an Asian worker in the rubble 12 hours after the explosion. Two found earlier were also Asian workers.
Broken glass littered streets lined with boutiques, jewelry stores and nightclubs. Police sources said the blast at 1:30 a.m. (1330 GMT) was caused by a big bomb placed inside the multi-story center, which was closed at the time.
The death toll would have been much higher if the blast had taken place in daytime in the usually crowded street.
Christian opposition figures who rushed to the scene said the bombing aimed to undermine Lebanon's stability and urged supporters to foil any attempts to sow sectarian rifts.
"It is clear that those who carried out this attack are targeting the security and stability of the country," opposition member of parliament Faris Bouez told reporters. "It is a political message to the (anti-Syrian) independence uprising."
SYRIA UNDER PRESSURE
World pressure and Lebanese opposition protests have forced Syria to announce a troop withdrawal from Lebanon. Some forces have already gone home, others have moved to the Bekaa Valley.
"What we all wish is that Lebanon regains its autonomy, its independence, its integrity and democracy," Chirac told a news conference in Brussels during a summit of EU leaders.
"We demand, in line with (U.N.) resolution 1559, that Syria withdraws entirely from Lebanon, as soon as possible."
The French position was later adopted by the 25-nation European Union at the summit.
The Security Council adopted the U.S. and French-sponsored resolution in September. It demands that all foreign forces leave Lebanon. France formerly ruled both Lebanon and Syria.
Annan, who met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday, told an Arab summit in Algiers he expected all Syrian troops and intelligence agents to leave Lebanon before the elections.
He also indicated he was not satisfied that a U.N. inquiry had got to the bottom of Hariri's assassination, saying:
"Within the next few days, I expect to release the report of the mission of inquiry I established in the wake of the killing. A more comprehensive investigation may well also be necessary."
The Lebanese judge heading a local investigation into the killing asked on Wednesday to be taken off the case, judicial sources said. They said the judiciary would decide on Thursday whether to accept the request and appoint another judge.
Lebanon has yet to release any results from its probe into the killing of Hariri and 19 others in the bomb attack.
The crisis touched off by Hariri's death is the worst since the end of Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war.
Kaslik residents, some dazed, others crying, ventured out after sunrise to sweep up glass from shattered shop fronts.
"We are afraid this is going to keep happening. The country is out of control," said George Akl, who was helping his son sweep shattered glass outside his hairdresser salon.
The opposition has refused to join pro-Syrian loyalists in a national unity government. If no government is formed by around April 10 it could delay the polls, political sources said. (Additional reporting by Lin Noueihed in Beirut, Paul de Debendern in Algiers and Kerstin Gehmlich in Brussels)
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