Anti-Syrian parliamentarian assassinated

LEBANESE anti-Syrian parliamentarian Walid Eido was killed yesterday when a bomb ripped through his car in western Beirut, security sources said.

One of Mr Eido’s sons was among the nine others killed by the blast on Beirut’s seafront which also wounded at least 11 people.

Mr Eido, 64, was a member of the majority anti-Syrian parliamentary bloc of Saad al-Hariri, which controls the Beirut government.

Mr Eido had been a vocal opponent of Syrian influence in Lebanon and an ally of former prime minister Rafik al-Hariri before his assassination by a massive car bomb in February 2005.

Mr Eido was killed three days after a UN Security Council resolution came into effect setting up an international tribunal into the Hariri assassination.

Saad al-Hariri and his allies in the majority coalition accuse Syria of the Hariri killing and attacks on other anti-Syrian figures that followed. Syria denies involvement.

The blast hit near an amusement park and military sporting club. Television pictures showed a burnt car set ablaze 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.

Mr Eido was the seventh anti-Syrian politician to be killed since Mr Hariri. His murder would further fuel heightened tensions between the government and the pro-Damascus opposition led by Hezbollah, the powerful Shi’ite Muslim guerrilla group determined to topple what it regards as a pro-US cabinet.