Lebanese President Condemns UN Convoy Attack

Beirut:  Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Saturday strongly condemned the attack on a United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) convoy, which occurred a day earlier on the airport road in Beirut, along with other security incidents in the capital, calling them “unacceptable” and “deplorable.”

In a statement from the Lebanese presidency, Aoun stressed that such acts must not be repeated, warning that security forces will not tolerate any attempts to undermine stability and civil peace.

He directed the army and security forces to restore order, reopen blocked roads, remove obstacles, and pursue those responsible for the unrest. Authorities have already launched field investigations and begun making arrests, he added.

Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar said on Saturday that more than 25 individuals are in now custody with the Lebanese Army Intelligence for investigation, with another detainee held by the Information Division of the Internal Security Forces.

“This does not mean these detainees carried out the attack… but the investigations will show who is responsible,” he added.

Violence broke out Friday evening when a group of young men attacked a UN-marked vehicle, assaulted its occupants, and torched three UNIFIL cars. A high-ranking UNIFIL officer was injured, Xinhua news agency reported.

The incidents come in the wake of protests held a day earlier over the refusal to allow an Iranian plane carrying Lebanese passengers to land in Beirut.

Lebanese aviation authorities barred on Thursday an Iranian passenger flight from landing at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport, the only operational international airport in Lebanon, following an Israeli claim that Iran had been using the airport to “smuggle funds to Hezbollah.”

(IANS)