A missile exploded earlier this month near the convoy of former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri while he visited a mountainous area in the eastern Bekaa Valley, a Saudi-owned TV station reported Sunday.
Hariri’s office in a statement said most of the report carried by Al-Hadath TV station was “generally correct." The blast reportedly occurred some 500 meters (yards) away from Hariri's motorcade on June 17.
Hariri was returning from a visit to the top Sunni cleric in the Bekaa valley, days after sectarian tensions and rare clashes in Beirut sparked by Lebanon's ongoing economic and financial crisis, the worst in decades.
Hariri, himself a Sunni Muslim, had resigned in late October following nationwide protests against the country’s ruling elite, who demonstrators blame for decades of corruption and mismanagement.
Al-Hadath TV reported that the explosion occurred as Hariri’s convoy of some 30 vehicles was returning to Beirut after the meeting with sheikh Khalil al-Mais in the eastern village of Makseh.
The report said security forces searched the area and found the remains of a missile. It added that an investigation was underway to determine whether the missile was fired from a drone or from the ground, as well as to determine the type of missile.
Three Lebanese security and military officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the incident from The Associated Press.
Hariri’s office said the former prime minister was informed by security services of an explosion in the area on the same day. But because “the convoy was not subjected to any attack, and to prevent any exploitation in light of the prevailing tension,” Hariri decided to remain silent about the incident and wait for the investigation to end.
Lebanon’s national police said in a statement late Sunday that during Hariri’s visit to the Bekaa, a person told security forces they had witnessed an object crash into the ground and explode. The police opened a secret investigation into the incident, adding that Hariri’s convoy was not directly attacked.
Hariri typically moves around Lebanon amid tight security measures. His father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, was assassinated on Feb. 14, 2005 in a massive truck bomb on a seaside road in Beirut that killed 21 others.
A U.N.-backed tribunal has indicted members of the militant Hezbollah group of being behind Rafik Hariri’s assassination. Hezbollah denies the accusation.
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — The governments of eight European Union member states said Friday the situation in Syria should be re-evaluated to allow for the voluntary return of Syrian refugees back to their homeland.
In a joint statement, officials from Austria, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Malta and Poland said they agree on a re-assessment that would lead to “more effective ways of handling” Syrian refugees trying to reach European Union countries.
The eight countries, which held talks during a summit meeting in the Cypriot capital, said the situation in Syria has “considerably evolved,” even though complete political stability hasn't been achieved.
Cyprus has in recent months seen an upsurge of Syrian refugees reaching the island nation primarily from Lebanon aboard rickety boats.
Earlier this month, the EU announced a 1 billion euro ($1.06 billion) aid package for Lebanon aimed at boosting border controls to halt the flow of asylum seekers and migrants to Cyprus and Italy.
The eight countries said the EU should further boost support for Lebanon to "mitigate the risk of even greater flows from Lebanon to the EU.”
“Decisions as to who has the right to cross a member state’s borders, should be taken by the government of the relevant member state and not by criminal networks engaged in migrant smuggling and trafficking in human beings,” the joint statement said.
The call comes a day afte r 15 EU member countries publicly called for the bloc to boost partnerships with countries along migratory routes in hopes of heading off attempts to reach EU countries.
The countries said that while they “fully embrace” the need to support Syrian refugees in line with international law, they hoped their talks could open a wider debate within the 27-member bloc on the process of granting the migrants international protection.
“What European citizens want from us ... are solutions, practical, realistic solutions that can be implemented,” said Greek Migration Minister Dimitris Kairidis.
Cypriot Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou said the United Nations' refugee agency has already “established lines of communication” with Syrian authorities regarding possible voluntary returns in line with international law.
The Cypriot minister said returns would initially be on a voluntary basis, but that could develop into forced returns at a later stage. Much more needs to be done for that to happen because the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad isn't recognized by the EU, he said.
In Lebanon, where anti-refugee sentiment has been surging recently, more than 300 Syrian refugees returned to Syria in a convoy earlier this week.
Lebanese officials have long urged the international community to either resettle the refugees in other countries or help them return to Syria.
Cyprus' interior minister Konstantinos Ioannou, right, talks to the media during a press conference as his counterparts Austria's Gerhard Karner, left, and Czech's Vít Rakusan stand by during the Ministerial Summit Migration and Syria Dynamics in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, May 17, 2024. The governments of eight European Union member states say the situation inside Syria should be re-evaluated to allow for voluntary returns of Syrian refugees back to their homeland. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
Cyprus' interior minister Konstantinos Ioannou, second right, talks to the media during a press conference as his counterparts Austria's Gerhard Karner, left, Czech's Vít Rakusan, second left, and Greece's Minister Of Immigration and Asylum Dimitris Kairides, right, stand by, during the Ministerial Summit Migration and Syria Dynamics in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, May 17, 2024. The governments of eight European Union member states say the situation inside Syria should be re-evaluated to allow for voluntary returns of Syrian refugees back to their homeland. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
Cyprus' interior minister Konstantinos Ioannou, second left, talks with his counterparts Austria's Gerhard Karner, left, Czech's Vít Rakusan, right, and Greece's Minister Of Immigration and Asylum Dimitris Kairides, second right, stand by, during the Ministerial Summit Migration and Syria Dynamics in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, May 17, 2024. The governments of eight European Union member states say the situation inside Syria should be re-evaluated to allow for voluntary returns of Syrian refugees back to their homeland. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
Cyprus' interior minister Konstantinos Ioannou, left, talks with his counterparts Austria's Gerhard Karner, right, Czech's Vít Rakusan, second right, and Greece's Minister Of Immigration and Asylum Dimitris Kairides, second left, during the Ministerial Summit Migration and Syria Dynamics in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, May 17, 2024. The governments of eight European Union member states say the situation inside Syria should be re-evaluated to allow for voluntary returns of Syrian refugees back to their homeland. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
Cyprus' interior minister Konstantinos Ioannou, second left, talks with his counterparts Austria's Gerhard Karner, left, Czech's Vít Rakusan, right, and Greece's Minister Of Immigration and Asylum Dimitris Kairides, second right, during the Ministerial Summit Migration and Syria Dynamics in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, May 17, 2024. The governments of eight European Union member states say the situation inside Syria should be re-evaluated to allow for voluntary returns of Syrian refugees back to their homeland. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
