Beirut (agencies)
Yesterday, the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs affirmed Lebanon’s commitment to protecting the headquarters of diplomatic missions operating in Beirut in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, following the exposure of gunfire to the US embassy yesterday morning.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati followed up on the issue of the shooting at the US Embassy headquarters in Awkar, during his meeting with Minister of National Defense Maurice Slim.
Mikati also made a series of contacts with the Army Commander, General Joseph Aoun, and the leaders of the security services, and the Prime Minister informed those concerned that “the situation is stable, and that intensive investigations have begun to clarify the circumstances of the incident and arrest all those involved,” according to what the National News Agency reported.
The Prime Minister also made contact with those concerned at the embassy to check on the situation and the embassy’s employees, given the presence of Ambassador Lisa Johnson outside Lebanon.
In a statement, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates in the caretaker government, Abdullah Bu Habib, condemned the attack on the American embassy in Beirut, stressing that he is following up on the details of the incident with the parties concerned.
The embassy announced that its facilities and team are safe after the rapid intervention of the Lebanese security forces following the shooting incident. She said, in a post on the “X” platform: “Yesterday morning, small arms fire was reported, and thanks to the quick reaction of the Lebanese Army, the Internal Security Forces, and our security team at the embassy, our facilities and team became safe,” adding that “investigations are ongoing and we are in close contact.” With the law enforcement authorities of the host country.
The American embassy in the Awkar area in Mount Lebanon was exposed to gunfire by a person of Syrian nationality, and members of the Lebanese army returned fire, wounding the shooter, who was arrested.
The Lebanese army said that the attacker was taken to hospital for treatment after suffering serious wounds, adding that the forces were still searching the area surrounding the embassy in search of other attackers.
A security source said that the Lebanese army wounded the attacker, adding that a member of the embassy’s security team suffered a minor injury. Lebanese security forces set up checkpoints around the embassy while an American-made helicopter provided to the Lebanese army was flying in the air.
The embassy is located north of Beirut in a highly secured area, with multiple checkpoints along the road leading to the entrance.
The embassy moved there from Beirut after a suicide attack in 1983 that killed more than 60 people.
In a separate incident, a security source and another diplomat said that a Lebanese security personnel assigned to guard the Saudi embassy in Lebanon committed suicide outside the embassy yesterday.
The security source stated that the embassy guard died after being shot in the head. The diplomatic source said that the security officer suffered from psychological problems.
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