Beirut bomb targeted Lebanese bank – interior minister

The headquarters of Lebanon’s Blom Bank was the target of a bomb blast in Beirut on Sunday, the interior minister told Reuters.

The bomb was placed behind the headquarters of BLOM bank, Lebanon’s second largest bank. Interior Minister Nohad Machnouk said the device had been left in a bag by the back wall of the building.

Mashnuq gave no further details, but in comments to LBCI television channel he said the blast was “different” from other explosions that have occurred in Lebanon over the past few years.

Central bank governor Riad Salameh last month said banks must comply with the law, but sought to ease concerns, assuring Lebanese citizens the regulations protect them from having bank accounts arbitrarily blocked or closed.

“The next text said: ‘He has us, and he’s in here with us,”‘ Mina Justice said. The blast “is a blow aimed against the economy and the banking sector”, he told An-Nahar. “Our battle with terrorism, bombings, killings, assassinations and direct and indirect messages is long …”

He said there were “no victims”, but a civil defense official said one person had been lightly wounded.

The state-run National News Agency said the bomb was placed under a auto.

Saad Azhari, the head of Blom Bank, told reporters he had no idea why his bank would be targeted.

The explosion in the upscale Verdun district on Sunday destroyed several cars and caused severe damage to one of Lebanon’s biggest banks.

Twin bombings in the densely populated neighborhood of Burj al-Barajneh in November past year killed 44 people.

“Politically it is clear that target was Blom Bank only”, he said, adding that the attack had nothing to do with the militant group Islamic State, which has mounted suicide bombings in Beirut.

Last year’s twin bombings came after a string of attacks in 2013 and 2014 targeting the group by Sunni extremist factions which cited Hezbollah’s military support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.