لن نحيد عن خط حددناه بالدم...BEIRUT, Lebanon (CNN) -- Lebanese Christian Cabinet minister Pierre Gemayel has been shot dead by apparent assassins in Beirut, senior Lebanese government officials said.
Gunmen opened fire on the industry minister's convoy as it drove through a Christian area of the city on Tuesday, security sources told Reuters. Gemayel, who was in his 30s, was taken to hospital where he died of his wounds.
Lebanese television showed angry and distraught supporters gathering outside the hospital, the news agency said.
Gemayel was a member of the Christian Phalange party and supporter of the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority.
The killing is set to deepen the political crisis in which the Lebanese government is currently locked in a power struggle with pro-Syrian factions led by Hezbollah.
"We believe the hand of Syria is all over the place," Lebanese parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri told CNN Tuesday, shortly after the shooting. Hariri is the son of assassinated former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
The United States described Tuesday's killing as an "act of terrorism," a senior U.S. official said on Tuesday, according to Reuters.
"This is a very sad day for Lebanon. We were shocked by this assassination. We view it as an act of terrorism and we also view it as an act of intimidation," U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said of the assassination.
In the ongoing political crisis, all five Shiite Muslim ministers and one Christian in Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's 24-member Cabinet resigned over the creation of an international tribunal to probe the assassination of Hariri.
U.N. investigators linked Syria to the death of Hariri and 22 other people on February, 14, 2005, when an explosion was set off near his motorcade. Damascus denies any involvement, and Hezbollah says Syria's accusers have no evidence to back up their claims.
Hariri's assassination led to a wave of anti-Syrian protests, dubbed the "Cedar Revolution," and the withdrawal of Syria's military from Lebanon. Syria had dominated Lebanon since 1976, when Syrian troops entered in the early days of Lebanon's civil war.
Gunmen opened fire on the industry minister's convoy as it drove through a Christian area of the city on Tuesday, security sources told Reuters. Gemayel, who was in his 30s, was taken to hospital where he died of his wounds.
Lebanese television showed angry and distraught supporters gathering outside the hospital, the news agency said.
Gemayel was a member of the Christian Phalange party and supporter of the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority.
The killing is set to deepen the political crisis in which the Lebanese government is currently locked in a power struggle with pro-Syrian factions led by Hezbollah.
"We believe the hand of Syria is all over the place," Lebanese parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri told CNN Tuesday, shortly after the shooting. Hariri is the son of assassinated former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
The United States described Tuesday's killing as an "act of terrorism," a senior U.S. official said on Tuesday, according to Reuters.
"This is a very sad day for Lebanon. We were shocked by this assassination. We view it as an act of terrorism and we also view it as an act of intimidation," U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said of the assassination.
In the ongoing political crisis, all five Shiite Muslim ministers and one Christian in Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's 24-member Cabinet resigned over the creation of an international tribunal to probe the assassination of Hariri.
U.N. investigators linked Syria to the death of Hariri and 22 other people on February, 14, 2005, when an explosion was set off near his motorcade. Damascus denies any involvement, and Hezbollah says Syria's accusers have no evidence to back up their claims.
Hariri's assassination led to a wave of anti-Syrian protests, dubbed the "Cedar Revolution," and the withdrawal of Syria's military from Lebanon. Syria had dominated Lebanon since 1976, when Syrian troops entered in the early days of Lebanon's civil war.
2 comments:
You know what I think about it. To all I have already said I just want to add that I hope with all my heart and I do believe, that your proud beautiful country will finally get its independence from all the idiots that in their stupid fight for power don't let it develop normally and live in peace... And I hope it will happen soon...
I'm sorry for your loss and sadness. Yet, we must remember to keep peace and harmony in our hearts, even through these trying times. My thoughts and prayers are with you.
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