Lebanese anti-Syrian parliamentarian Walid Eido was killed with at least seven other people on Wednesday by a blast on Beirut’s seafront, security sources said.
One of Eido’s sons was among the dead. Nine people were wounded.
Eido, in his 60s, was a member of the majority anti-Syrian parliamentary bloc of Saad al-Hariri, which controls the Beirut government.
The blast hit near an amusement park and military sporting club in the western half of the city. Television pictures showed a car blaze and shattered windows at a nearby restaurant.
It was the sixth blast to hit Beirut and the surrounding areas in less than four weeks. Two people have been killed in the five previous blasts, all caused by bombs.
Lebanon has been hit by a wave of assassinations targeting anti-Syrian figures since the slaying of former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri in February 2005. In November, anti-Syrian Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel was killed by gunmen in a Christian neighbourhood of Beirut. — Reuters