Hezbollah seriously denounced on Friday the crime which targeted former minister Mohammad Shatah and led to his martyrdom, along with several Lebanese citizens.
“Hezbollah sees that this crime is one of a series of crimes and blasts aimed at![Hezbollah flag]()
devastating the country,” the party said in a statement released by Hezbollah Media Relations.
devastating the country,” the party said in a statement released by Hezbollah Media Relations.It added that the attack is a “flagrant attempt to target the national stability and unity,” noting that no one profits from such blast but enemies of Lebanon.
“Hezbollah calls on the Lebanese to be rational and wise in order to face the dangers which are threatening their country,” the statement added.
The party also urged the security and judicial apparatuses to exert efforts in order to capture the perpetrators and bring them to justice.
Beirut car bomb assassinates former finance minister
A car bomb rocked the downtown area of Beirut Friday morning, killing Mohamed Shattah, former finance minister and senior advisor to ex-prime minister, Saad Hariri.
According to the ministry of health, the number of dead has increased to six, with another four people still missing. The number of people injured has surpassed 70, and is expected to rise.
Ali Hassan Khalil, Lebanon's health minister, has called on all hospitals in the area to keep their doors open to receive those injured from the explosion.
The sound of the blast was heard across the city at 9:40am, and a plume of black smoke was seen rising in the downtown business and hotel district. Several unconfirmed reports state that 50-60 kilograms of explosives were used as Shattah and his convoy were on their way to attend a meeting.The explosion comes a month after a suicide attack at the Iranian embassy in south Beirut killed 23 people and wounded a further 146.
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati denounced Friday's assassination in a statement issued by his press office.
The caretaker PM also condemned all the acts that only lead to further violence and killings, considering that “it only inflict farther chaos and damages to the nation.”
“The misery must end and Lebanon and its people should live in peace,” he added.
Shattah was staunch critic of Hezbollah and the Syrian government. Just prior to his death, he tweeted:
is pressing hard to be granted similar powers in security & foreign policy matters that Syria exercised in Lebanon for 15 yrs.
For his part, former PM Saad Hariri wrote on Twitter:
الذين اغتالوا محمد شطح هم الذين اغتالوا رفيق الحريري، والذين يريدون اغتيال لبنان وتمريغ أنف الدولة بالذل والضعف والفراغ
Speaking to the press, Ali Fayyad, a Hezbollah MP, strongly condemned the bombing as a "crime" and added,"The aim of this crime is to weaken the security and unity of the country and further bloodshed. Our priority is to ensure that that doesn't happen. We [at Hezbollah] are concerned about the situation, and we want to make sure that dialogue between all parties continues.”
Hadi Hobeich, Future Movement MP, pointed the finger at Hezbollah. Speaking to LBC, he said, "The crime today is pushing conflict in [Lebanon]. The criminals are trying to pressure March 14 and that will not happen. They are killing our members but [these acts] will not sway our goals and aims. We will only become much more rigid.”
He also stated that he believed that there was a "connection between Shattah's assassination and the delay of the Special Tribunal of Lebanon regarding [Rafik] Hariri's assassination."
Relatives of those in the area are reportedly having difficulty accessing the site and are having trouble contacting their loved one. On this matter, an official for the High Committee of Rescue stated to the press that the area was currently cordon off as emergency crews are helping clear the destruction and are providing medical help to those who have been wounded.
Footage from various local channels showed people on fire and others lying on the ground, some bloodied, while ambulances rushed to the stricken area.
A restaurant and a coffee shop were destroyed in the blast, and several cars were on fire, the witness said to AFP, adding that there was glass everywhere and the smell of explosives filled the air.
Much of Beirut went into lockdown following the explosion, with police blocking off roads across the city.
According to several other eye witnesses, the impact of the explosion shook several buildings in the vicinity of the site.
Tarek Omar, a 24-year-old employee of a nearby bank, described to Al-Akhbar how he was stuck in the elevator when the explosion struck.
"The power went out and after 15 minutes we were finally able to rejoin our colleagues," he said. "Everyone was panicking, all the women were screaming."
"We were all very scared."
Hassan Naous, 35, told Al-Akhbar's correspondent that he was around the corner from the blast. “We didn't know where the explosion occurred. We didn't know if it was behind us or in front of us. So we just ran where ever we could because we were afraid of a second explosion,” he said.
“I want to leave [Lebanon],” he added.
Similarly, construction workers digging underground at a near-by site felt the blast.
"We didn't see what happened, but we felt the vibrations despite all our equipment running. It knocked the construction barrier down," they said.
استشهد وزير المالية اللبنانية السابق محمد شطح و6 آخرون في انفجار وقع وسط بيروت صباح اليوم الجمعة. كما جرح أكثر من خمسين شخصا وتضرر أكثر من عشرة مبان جراء الانفجار، والمبنى الأكثر تضررا هو مبنى ستاركو ومكاتب الهيئة العليا للاغاثة.
وافادت الوكالة الوطنية للاعلام انه تم العثور في مكان الانفجار على الدفتر العائد لسيارة الوزير السابق شطح وفيه: رقم السيارة 364/ج وهي نوع نيسان "اكستريل"موديل 2011، وتحمل اسمه الكامل: محمد بهاء محمد حسين شطح.
كما أفادت الوكالة انه عرف من بين الجرحى في انفجار الستاركو كل من: عمر بكداش، محمد الشعار، ربيع يوسف وأحمد المغربي.
وأفيد عن اصابة عدد من الموظفين في مكتب وزير شؤون التنمية الإدارية محمد فنيش جراء الانفجار.
وأوعز وزير الصحة العامة علي حسن خليل، الى مستشفيات العاصمة كافة، بوجوب استقبال جميع المصابين في التفجير الارهابي، وتقديم أعلى درجات العناية لهم، وأعلن أن الوزارة تضع كل امكاناتها لتأمين ما يلزم لمعالجتهم.
من جهته أكد مدعي عام التمييز القاضي سمير حمود الذي تفقد مكان الانفجار أن "العبوة تزن بين 50 و60 كلغ، وقد تم تكليف الشرطة العسكرية وفرع المعلومات إجراء التحقيقات الأولية والأدلة الجنائية لرفع الأدلة عن مسرح الجريمة".
وردا على سؤال قال :"التحقيقات ما زالت مستمرة ولم يتم توقيف أحد بعد".
نبذة عن حياة الشهيد محمد شطح
- محمد بهاء شطح اقتصادي ودبلوماسي لبناني. من مواليد 1951 - طرابلس، متزوج وله ولدان.
- انهى دراسته الابتدائية والثانوية في المدرسة الانجيلية في طرابلس و"الانترناشونال كولدج"في بيروت.
- حاصل على بكالوريوس في الاقتصاد من الجامعة الاميركية في بيروت عام 1974، ودكتوراه في الاقتصاد من جامعة تكساس في الولايات المتحدة عام 1983، حيث درس ايضا فيها مادة الاقتصاد اعواما عدة.
- من عام 1983 حتى عام 2005، عمل في صندوق النقد الدولي في الولايات المتحدة، حيث تبوأ مناصب مختلفة منها مستشار لمجلس ادارة الصندوق عن منطقة الشرق الاوسط ونائب. المدير التنفيذي.
- من عام 1993 حتى عام 1997، شغل منصب نائب حاكم مصرف لبنان.
- من عام 1997 حتى عام 1999، شغل منصب سفير لبنان لدى الولايات المتحدة حتى العام 2000.
- عاد وعمل لدى "صندوق النقد الدولي"من عام 2001 وحتى حزيران 2005، توافقت استقالة شطح من "صندوق النقد الدولي"واغتيال الحريري في 14 شباط 2005 .
- عمل كمستشار اول لرئيس الوزراء فؤاد السنيورة من آب 2005 حتى تموز 2008 ولسعد الحريري من آب 2009 وحتى كانون الثاني 2011 .
- 11 تموز 2008 تسلم حقيبة وزارة المال في حكومة الرئيس فؤاد السنيورة التي إنتهت مهامها في 9 تشرين 2009.