Beirut Blast Rips US Car, Kills 4

At least 19 wounded in latest in spate of attacks on Western targets
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 15, 2008 10:20 AM CST
Beirut Blast Rips US Car, Kills 4
Firefighters try to extinguish a burning car at the site of an explosion in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2008. An explosion targeted a US Embassy vehicle Tuesday in northern Beirut, killing four Lebanese and injuring a local embassy employee, a US official said. (AP Photo/Vartivar Karageuzian)   (Associated Press)

An explosion blasted a US embassy car just north of Beirut today, killing at least four in a predominantly Christian neighborhood, CNN reports. It was unclear whether the car was the target of the blast or tripped a roadside bomb. The driver of the US vehicle was injured, as were at least 19 others, including an Iraqi and several Lebanese.

The blast is the latest in a string of attacks against pro-Western or anti-Syrian targets that have rocked the country for 3 years; they've intensified since the pro-Syrian president stepped down in November. Two UN diplomats were injured in a roadside bombing in southern Lebanon last week, and on Dec. 12, a blast killed the operational head of the Lebanese army. (More Lebanon stories.)

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