BEIRUT, 23 July 2005 — An explosion in Beirut wounded seven people near a busy street of restaurants and bars yesterday, hours after US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice paid a surprise visit to Lebanon.
The blast was caused by a small bomb near a car parked outside a restaurant in Rue Monot. It destroyed two cars and sprayed the street, bustling with nightlife, with shards of glass. Four of the wounded were sent to hospital, security sources said. Three others were treated with minor injuries. Police cordoned off the area and evacuated the street after the blast.
During her visit, Rice pressed for the disarming of Hezbollah and berated Syria for its virtual lockdown of Lebanon’s border during a surprise visit to Lebanon yesterday.
Rice’s visit aimed to show support for Lebanon’s new government, whose formation crowned months of political turmoil that saw the crumbling of Syria’s long-time control and the withdrawal of its troops after a 29-year presence. The new government, named Tuesday, is the first in years to be dominated by opponents of Syria.
Ending Damascus’ hold on Lebanon was a major US goal. But the new government also includes for the first time ever a member of Hezbollah, which Washington considers a terrorist organization.
The United States has said it will not deal with the Hezbollah minister, though his presence will not prevent contacts with the government as a whole.
Rice, who flew aboard a private plane from neighboring Israel for the previously unannounced visit, demanded Lebanon disarm Hezbollah in accordance with a United Nations resolution.
“There can be only one authority in a country, and in a democracy, there can be only one authority that is armed,” Rice said in reference to Hezbollah. “The new Lebanon is one that should be free of foreign influence... and it is one that does have international obligations,” she said.
