Arab Countries 'Strongly' Condemn Beirut Blast, KSA, Kuwait Urge Citizens to Leave Lebanon
Saudi Arabia and Qatar on Friday "strongly" condemned the car bomb blast in Beirut that killed six people, including former finance minister Mohammed Shatah.
Saudi Arabia "has followed with great concern and disturbance the outrageous terrorist bombing" that rocked the Lebanese capital, said a statement on the official SPA news agency.
"The kingdom strongly condemns this cowardly criminal act and urges all parties in Lebanon to listen to the sound of rationalism and common sense... and insists on the need of the state to enhance its authority and that of the army across all Lebanese territories."
Later in the day, the Saudi embassy in Lebanon released a statement urging its citizens to avoid traveling to the country.
"We also ask Saudis that are already in Lebanon to return to KSA as a safety precaution,” the statement added.
Shatah, an economist, former finance minister and Lebanon's ambassador to the United States, was the ninth high-profile anti-Syria figure killed in Lebanon since the 2005 assassination of former prime minister Rafik Hariri.
Qatar's foreign ministry in a statement said it "strongly condemns such criminal acts that contradict all human values, and threaten to drag the region into chaos and instability".
The Gulf state "affirms its stance in rejecting all forms of violence regardless of the source or motivation," it added.
Kuwait also strongly condemned Beirut's blast.
"This crime, that is rejected by all religions and criminalized by laws, targeted Lebanon's security, stability and unity,” a senior official in the Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry said.
The official called on all Lebanese factions to exercise self-restraint and show solidarity “amid these difficult circumstances.”
"We reiterate Kuwait's position of rejecting terrorism and cooperating with the international community to draw an end to it.”
The Foreign Ministry also warned against travel to Lebanon and urged all Kuwaiti citizens who are already there to leave "as soon as possible."
Later on Friday, the Tunisian Foreign Ministry condemned the “terrorist attack” and stressed on the Tunisian people's solidarity with “their brothers in Lebanon.”
"We fully support Lebanon in the face of these terrorist acts to preserve the country's security, stability and national unity.”
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu called caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati and former premier Fouad Saniora, offering his condolences over the death of Shatah and 5 other civilians.
"The Lebanese people will not fall into this trap and will take a moderate and logical stance to protect their country's unity and stability,” Turkey's Foreign Ministry said in a released statement.
Turkey also vowed to “cooperate with the Lebanese state and its people.”
Russia also “strongly condemned the barbaric crime.”
Alexander Lukashevich, the Foreign Ministry's spokesperson considered that the blast aimed at "worsening the political situation and the sectarian tension in the country, and drag Lebanon into a dark crisis," according to the Russian RIA Novosti news agency.
"We urge the Lebanese to avoid falling into these provocations, and to unite for the sake of the country's security and stability,” Lukashevich added. “We reiterate Russia's support for national dialogue on the basis of respecting the interests of all factions in the Lebanese society.”
Egypt's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Badr Abdelatty pointed out that an Egyptian national was wounded in the explosion and is being treated at a Beirut hospital.
"Our Ambassador to Lebanon Ashraf Hamdi informed us that Mohammed Nabil Abdul Menhem was wounded in the leg and that he is in a stable condition at the moment,” Abdelatty told the Egyptian television.
"Egypt condemns today's explosion in Beirut and this is a sign that there is an international phenomenon that's pushing for more violence and wasting all chances for development,” he added.
UAE, as well, strongly deplored the attack, considering that it targets the “unity and stability of Lebanon and contradicts all human values.”
The Gulf country urged political leaders to “stand firmly against those who target the security and stability of the country.”
“We call on them to protect their country from the repercussions of this attack that aims to plunge it into chaos and violence,” UAE's Foreign Ministry said in a released statement.
“We reiterate reiterated our unwavering stand against terrorism in all its shapes.”
The March 14 coalition has accused Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime of being behind the Friday blast. Damascus rejected the accusations.
Source: Naharnet
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