Suicide bombing in Lebanon kills two troops: security

A suicide bomber killed at least two soldiers at a military checkpoint near the border with Syria.

BAALBEK, Lebanon // A suicide car bomber exploded his vehicle at an army checkpoint in eastern Lebanon near the border with Syria on Saturday, killing at least two soldiers, a security official said.

“A suicide bomber detonated his car in front of a Lebanese army checkpoint at Aqabet Al-Jurd in the Arsal area,” the official said.

He said at least two soldiers were killed, raising an earlier toll of one dead, and that others were wounded.

“There were at least seven soldiers at the checkpoint,” the official added.

The attack was claimed on Twitter by a shadowy group calling itself Liwa Ahrar Al Sunna in Baalbek — Arabic for the Brigades of the free Sunni Muslims.

It said the attack was to avenge the death of Sami Al Atrash, a suspect wanted in connection with car bombings targeting Lebanon’s Shiite militant group Hizbollah.

Atrash was killed on Thursday in a shoot-out with the army.

The army had described Atrash as a “dangerous terrorist” who was tracked down to a hideout in Arsal, where he was killed.

The Arsal region has seen a spillover of the conflict across the border as Syrian regime forces backed by fighters from Hizbollah press their campaign against rebels.

Most Sunni Muslims in Lebanon back the rebels fighting to oust Syrian President Bashar Al Assad.

Sunni groups have targeted Hizbollah interests in Beirut and elsewhere in Lebanon with car bombings in the past months.

Hizbollah claims that the car bombs were prepared in the Qalamun region just across the border and the scene of fierce fighting, before being driven via Arsal to their eventual targets.

Syrian troops backed by Hizbollah have gained ground in Qalamun, in mid-March seizing Yabrud, the last major stronghold of the rebels.

On Saturday, Syria’s military said the troops seized two villages from the rebels as they pressed their offensive with Hizbollah support.

A Syrian military source called the latest advance “a new step towards closing off the border with Lebanon”.

Liwa Ahrar Al Sham also claimed a March 16 car bombing in eastern Lebanon that killed two people.

The same attack was also claimed by Al Nusra Front, Al Qaeda’s Syria affiliate, with both groups saying it was in revenge for the fall of Yabrud.

* Agence France-Presse