Ansar al-Islam claims Hezbollah bombing

February 26, 2013

by Ahmed Kwider and Nuha Shabaan

Militant rebel faction Ansar al-Islam claimed credit on Tuesday for bombing a Hezbollah convoy that included Syrian officers and Lebanese officials, the group said in a facebook statement.

“The bombing took place by land mines placed on the Damascus-Beirut highway close to the Syrian-Lebanese border,” the statement said.

A spokesman for the opposition organization Capital Damascus Heartbeat (Nabid al-Asimat Dimashq) said that Hezbollah was a legitimate target for the rebels.

“The war between this armed entity [Hezbollah] and the Syrian people started long ago and will continue until they withdraw all its forces from Syria,” said Muhammad al-Ashmar, 28. [See full interview with al-Ashmar here.]

The officials were en route to Lebanon for a security meeting, the statement said, adding that “the operation was carried out after bribing corrupt army officers.”

Everyone in the convoy was killed, Ansar al-Islam said.