AlHijjah 03, 1433, October 19, 2012, SPA -- A top Lebanese security official was killed in the car bombing in Beirut on Friday, Lebanon's Al-Jadeed television said. Wissam Al-Hassan, who was in charge of a top intelligence unit, was the brain behind uncovering a recent bomb plot that led to the arrest of a pro-Syrian Lebanese politician. Earlier in the day, Lebanon's state-run news agency said a massive blast in east Beirut was caused by a car bomb and that there are casualties. An Associated Press reporter at the scene, also saw bloodied people being helped into ambulances and heavy damage to what appeared to be residential buildings in the mostly Christian Achrafieh neighborhood. The motive behind Friday's blast was not immediately clear. Lebanon has seen a rise in clashes and tensions in recent months stemming from the civil war in neighboring Syria.
