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Lebanon bus bomb kills 14, including civilians

A bomb attack on a commercial bus containing civilians in Tripoli, north Lebanon, on Wednesday 13 August killed at least 14 people, according to reports.

The bomb exploded while the bus was near a bus-stop on a busy street. The dead included both civilians and soldiers who were travelling on the bus or who were bystanders close to the scene of the explosion. Tens of others were injured.

The Tripoli area has witnessed considerable violence over the last year. This summer more than 20 people were killed in battles between two rival political groups.

Last year, over 40 civilians and 170 soldiers were killed during fighting between Fatah al-Islam, an Islamist armed group, which had installed itself in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp, north of Tripoli, and the Lebanese army.

On 12 December last year, General Francois el-Hajj, the Lebanese Army's chief of operations during the fighting in Nahr al-Bared, and a bodyguard, were killed in a car bomb attack in Ba'abda, outside the capital Beirut.

Amnesty International has condemned all attacks on civilians and has called for the Tripoli bomb attack to be investigated promptly, effectively and impartially. The organization has also called for those found responsible to be brought to justice in accordance with international fair trial standards.

Topics: Security situation, Terrorists,