Do you believe this assassination was backed by the Syrian Government?
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanese Christian cabinet minister Pierre Gemayel, an outspoken critic of
Syria, was assassinated near Beirut on Tuesday, plunging Lebanon deeper into a crisis over ties with its dominant neighbor.
ADVERTISEMENT
At least three gunmen rammed their car into Gemayel's vehicle, then leapt out and riddled it with bullets, firing at Gemayel with silencer-equipped automatic weapons at point-blank range in the Christian Sin el-Fil neighborhood, witnesses said.
Ten bullet holes were seen around the window of the driver's seat of his grey car. The two front seats were soaked in blood.
The son of assassinated former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri blamed Syria for the killing, but Damascus condemned the murder.
Gemayel, 34, was rushed to hospital where he later died of his wounds. Television footage showed hundreds of angry and weeping family members and supporters gathering at the hospital.
Angry protesters in the Christian town of Zahle in eastern Lebanon blocked off streets and shouted slogans against Hezbollah bollah and Christian opposition leader Michel Aoun.
Gemayel's father urged supporters to remain calm and avoid retribution.
"I have one wish, that tonight be a night of prayer to contemplate the meaning of this martyrdom and how to protect this country," former President Amin Gemayel told reporters outside the hospital where the body of his son Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel was taken.
"I call on all those who appreciate Pierre's martyrdom to preserve his cause and for all of us to remain at the service of Lebanon. We don't want reactions and revenge," he said.
"HAND OF SYRIA"
The killing is certain to heighten tensions in Lebanon amid a deep political crisis pitting the anti-Syrian majority against the pro-Damascus opposition led by Hezbollah, which is determined to topple what it sees as a pro-U.S. government.
"We believe the hand of Syria is all over the place," Saad al-Hariri, whose father Rafik al-Hariri was killed in a suicide truck bombing last year, said from Beirut shortly after Gemayel was shot dead.
"Syria strongly condemns the killing," the official Syrian news agency SANA said. The Shi'ite group Hezbollah also condemned the "low criminal act" and urged an investigation.
Gemayel, elected to parliament in 2000 and again in 2005, is the third Lebanese anti-Syrian figure to be assassinated since former prime minister Hariri's killing in February 2005.
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanese Christian cabinet minister Pierre Gemayel, an outspoken critic of
Syria, was assassinated near Beirut on Tuesday, plunging Lebanon deeper into a crisis over ties with its dominant neighbor.
ADVERTISEMENT
At least three gunmen rammed their car into Gemayel's vehicle, then leapt out and riddled it with bullets, firing at Gemayel with silencer-equipped automatic weapons at point-blank range in the Christian Sin el-Fil neighborhood, witnesses said.
Ten bullet holes were seen around the window of the driver's seat of his grey car. The two front seats were soaked in blood.
The son of assassinated former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri blamed Syria for the killing, but Damascus condemned the murder.
Gemayel, 34, was rushed to hospital where he later died of his wounds. Television footage showed hundreds of angry and weeping family members and supporters gathering at the hospital.
Angry protesters in the Christian town of Zahle in eastern Lebanon blocked off streets and shouted slogans against Hezbollah bollah and Christian opposition leader Michel Aoun.
Gemayel's father urged supporters to remain calm and avoid retribution.
"I have one wish, that tonight be a night of prayer to contemplate the meaning of this martyrdom and how to protect this country," former President Amin Gemayel told reporters outside the hospital where the body of his son Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel was taken.
"I call on all those who appreciate Pierre's martyrdom to preserve his cause and for all of us to remain at the service of Lebanon. We don't want reactions and revenge," he said.
"HAND OF SYRIA"
The killing is certain to heighten tensions in Lebanon amid a deep political crisis pitting the anti-Syrian majority against the pro-Damascus opposition led by Hezbollah, which is determined to topple what it sees as a pro-U.S. government.
"We believe the hand of Syria is all over the place," Saad al-Hariri, whose father Rafik al-Hariri was killed in a suicide truck bombing last year, said from Beirut shortly after Gemayel was shot dead.
"Syria strongly condemns the killing," the official Syrian news agency SANA said. The Shi'ite group Hezbollah also condemned the "low criminal act" and urged an investigation.
Gemayel, elected to parliament in 2000 and again in 2005, is the third Lebanese anti-Syrian figure to be assassinated since former prime minister Hariri's killing in February 2005.
Xbone Stormsurgezz
