Bullets hit car of Lebanese Defense Minister But No One Hurt

Defense Minister of Lebanon
Image Credit: Google

A Hezbollah member was killed in a shootout with residents in a Christian village in Lebanon on Thursday. The incident comes amid a political crisis in the country.

Lebanon's Caretaker Defense Minister Maurice Slim's car was hit by bullets, but no one was injured, according to the Lebanese officials.

The car was traveling in the Jisr al-Basrah neighborhood on the southeast edge of the capital Beirut on Thursday when two bullets hit one of its windows.

Interior Minister Bassam Al-Malawi said that an investigation is ongoing into whether the minister was targeted or whether the incident was the result of stray bullets.

"In any case, we thank God for the defense minister's safety," the cleric said.

Deadly Shootout at Southeast of Beirut

It came as the Lebanese army was deployed in a Christian village in the mountains southeast of Beirut after a deadly shootout between residents and members of the Shiite group Hezbollah.

Incident of Truck

About 10 army vehicles were deployed around Kahlia on Thursday, a day after a truck driven by Hezbollah members overturned at a sharp bend on a major highway connecting Beirut to the Bekaa Valley and Syria.

Kahlia Mayor Abboud Abi Khalil said residents surrounded the truck on Wednesday evening and demanded to know what was inside, before Hezbollah members opened fire on it and killed it. Killed one of them. 

Iran-backed Hezbollah said one of its members was also shot and later died of his injuries.

Both Sides Have Accused Each other of Initiating the Firing

Ahmad Qassas, a Hezbollah member killed in the violence, was given a military funeral on Thursday in the southern suburbs of Beirut, his coffin draped in the yellow Hezbollah flag.

"We will not be dragged into conflict, and we will not be able to achieve the goals of those who want to lead the country into conflict," Hezbollah's Syed Ali Fahs said during the funeral.

The army confirmed in a statement on Thursday that two people had been killed and said ammunition had been seized from the truck.

"The contents of the truck have been taken to a military base, and an investigation has been initiated by competent judicial authorities," it added.

Lebanese Financial Collapse

Lebanon has been in the grip of a four-year-long financial collapse that has created the most instability since the 1975-1990 civil war. 

This happened because of decades of corruption and illegal spending by politicians.

Hezbollah is the most powerful group in Lebanon. Its arsenal has long been a point of contention in Lebanon, where its opponents accuse the group of undermining the state.

(Courtesy: Al-Jazeera)