2 suicide bombers in Hezbollah stronghold 
Dozens of people have been killed and more than 180 wounded in Lebanon’s worst terrorist attack this year after a double suicide bombing in south Beirut upended a fragile peace in Syria’s tiny neighbour.
The Lebanese Red Cross said 37 people had died and 181 had been wounded in the twin blasts on Thursday, which targeted the Shia-majority district of Burj al-Barajneh. It was the first major suicide bombing to strike the country since a similar attack in January that targeted an Alawite area in the northern city of Tripoli. The number of casualties is likely to rise due to the severity of the attack.
app
Download the free Guardian app
Read the latest news from across the world on the Guardian app and save articles to read across your devices and desktop.
Click here
The terrorist group Islamic State (Isis) claimed responsibility for the attack on social media, saying the first bomber had parked an explosives-laden motorcycle in the neighbourhood and a second bomber detonated his suicide vest in the gathering that arrived on the scene after the first attack.
Isis said the aim of the attack was to kill Shias. Local media identified the three suicide bombers, saying two of them were Palestinians and one Syrian. Burj al-Barajneh is a heavily populated, poor and crowded neighbourhood that is often associated with Hezbollah. It was not possible to verify Isis’s claim of responsibility.
Lebanon’s prime minister, Tammam Salam, said: “We condemn this cowardly criminal act that can never be justified, and we call on the Lebanese to be more watchful and united against strife.”
Dozens of people have been killed and more than 180 wounded in Lebanon’s worst terrorist attack this year after a double suicide bombing in south Beirut upended a fragile peace in Syria’s tiny neighbour.
The Lebanese Red Cross said 37 people had died and 181 had been wounded in the twin blasts on Thursday, which targeted the Shia-majority district of Burj al-Barajneh. It was the first major suicide bombing to strike the country since a similar attack in January that targeted an Alawite area in the northern city of Tripoli. The number of casualties is likely to rise due to the severity of the attack.
app
Download the free Guardian app
Read the latest news from across the world on the Guardian app and save articles to read across your devices and desktop.
Click here
The terrorist group Islamic State (Isis) claimed responsibility for the attack on social media, saying the first bomber had parked an explosives-laden motorcycle in the neighbourhood and a second bomber detonated his suicide vest in the gathering that arrived on the scene after the first attack.
Isis said the aim of the attack was to kill Shias. Local media identified the three suicide bombers, saying two of them were Palestinians and one Syrian. Burj al-Barajneh is a heavily populated, poor and crowded neighbourhood that is often associated with Hezbollah. It was not possible to verify Isis’s claim of responsibility.
Lebanon’s prime minister, Tammam Salam, said: “We condemn this cowardly criminal act that can never be justified, and we call on the Lebanese to be more watchful and united against strife.”
