Syria Thwarted Suicide Bombing Of Soccer Stadium A Month Ago

Hmmm....looks like the Syrians might just have their own islamic terror problem! hahahaha! Apparently, in revenge for the arrest of Fatah al Islam leader Shaker al-Abssi by the Syrians, al-Abssi's followers had plotted a five member suicide bombing of a Syrian soccer stadium until the plot was uncovered by the Syrians. Here's the entire story from Naharnet:

Syria Thwarts Attempt by Abssi Aides to Bomb Out Soccer Stadium

Syrian security operatives have thwarted a suicide bombing at a soccer stadium in Damascus by aides to jailed Fatah al-Islam leader Shaker al-Abssi. The daily newspaper al-Liwaa said Saturday that the five-member terrorist cell had planned to bomb out al-Abbasiyeen soccer stadium during a major competition a month ago to avenge Abssi's arrest.The report said Syrian intelligence operatives arrested Abssi two months ago at the low-income Meliha district in southern Damascus.Intelligence operatives carried out a "major house raid in the district, which resulted in arresting Abssi," the report added. Abssi escaped an assault by the Lebanese Army on his base at the northern refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared more than a year ago and went missing. Al-Liwaa said Lebanese authorities are to officially ask Syrian authorities for information on Abssi.

You know, it might just throw a wrench in Syrian plans of invading Lebanon and building three more nuclear weapons facilities if they find themselves in a weekly battle with terrorist groups who are blowing half the country up - boy, that would be a shame now wouldn't it?

Car Bomb In Lebanon Kills 5 Lebanese Soldiers

Lebanon was rocked again today by terror as a military bus was targeted by a car bombing near the northern city of Tripoli - five Lebanese soldiers were killed in the blast. There is no question in my mind that this was the world of Fatah al Islam which is the al Qaeda linked group that vowed revenge against the government and its military after they were squashed in operations in northern Lebanon. Fatah al Islam is a Sunni group and of course, the landscape of Lebanon is dominated by Shia Hezbollah. Here's some of the details from the article on the bombing from Breitbart:

Five Lebanese soldiers were killed on Monday in a car bomb blast targeting an army bus on the outskirts of the restive northern city of Tripoli, security and military officials said.
A security official told AFP that another 24 people, 18 of them soldiers, were wounded in the explosion, the second deadly bombing targeting the Lebanese army in two months.
"Once again a treacherous hand has reached out to strike at the military establishment in a terrorist attack clearly aimed at undermining efforts at peace and stability," a statement by the army command said.
The bomb, placed under a parked car at the southern entrance to the city, was packed with nuts and bolts and police suspect the device was detonated by remote control.

The army last year fought a 15-week battle with the Al-Qaeda inspired Fatah al-Islam militia in a Palestinian refugee camp near Tripoli that left 400 people dead, including 168 soldiers.
The head of Fatah al-Islam, Shaker al-Abssi, earlier this year vowed revenge attacks against the army.

The Lebanese have tried to sweep Fatah al Islam under the rug ever since last year but as we can see, they aren't going away and they certainly haven't given up their vow of revenge. I would have to say that this bombing is going to probably force the government into a huge crackdown in the nothern areas and if that happens, it could really get bloody - and not just with Fatah al Islam ... everytime a crackdown happens, other groups feel threatened and it turns into some form of chaos with the Druze, Christians and Shias involved as well.

Five Lebanese soldiers killed in car bomb blast

Five Lebanese soldiers were killed on Monday in a car bomb blast targeting an army bus on the outskirts of the restive northern city of Tripoli, security and military officials said.
A security official told AFP that another 24 people, 18 of them soldiers, were wounded in the explosion, the second deadly bombing targeting the Lebanese army in two months.
"Once again a treacherous hand has reached out to strike at the military establishment in a terrorist attack clearly aimed at undermining efforts at peace and stability," a statement by the army command said.
The bomb, placed under a parked car at the southern entrance to the city, was packed with nuts and bolts and police suspect the device was detonated by remote control.
It blew up as the bus headed towards the capital Beirut during morning rush-hour. There were about 24 soldiers on board, most of them from the village of Akroum, located about 50 kilometers north of Tripoli near the Syrian border.
The owner of the booby-trapped vehicle was detained for questioning, a security official said.
Police and the army cordoned off the area as forensic experts began gathering evidence while residents rushed to the scene or to nearby hospitals to look for their loved ones.
One man in his 50s wept and appealed for news about his son who he said was on board the bus.
Ali Al-Khatib said his 37-year-old cousin Anwar Jasim Al-Khatib, a father of two, was among the soldiers killed.
"He spent the weekend with his wife and children buying clothes for the Muslim Eid and was supposed to come back for the holiday tonight," Al-Khatib said, as he stood outside Tripoli's Nini hospital.
The force of the blast shattered windows and damaged cars nearby. The Renault vehicle under which the bomb was placed was left a burned-out pile of twisted metal.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
A similar explosion in August left 14 people dead, nine of them soldiers, in the deadliest attack in Lebanon in three years.
Parliament speaker Nabih Berri said Monday's blast was aimed at scuttling measures toward reconciliation by the country's rival pro- and anti-Syrian factions. He also denounced the fact that the blast took place as Muslims prepared to celebrate this week the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
Several officials said they suspect the attack was aimed at undercutting the army's bid to secure Tripoli, which has has been rocked by deadly sectarian violence in recent months.
Tensions had eased in the past few weeks after Lebanon's rival factions signed a reconciliation accord aimed at putting the lid on a political crisis that took the country to the brink of a new civil war earlier this year.
"This attack targets the army's morale and seeks to rattle relations between the military and the residents of Tripoli... following the expanded deployment of troops," Tripoli MP Moustapha Alloush told AFP.
The army last year fought a 15-week battle with the Al-Qaeda inspired Fatah al-Islam militia in a Palestinian refugee camp near Tripoli that left 400 people dead, including 168 soldiers.
The head of Fatah al-Islam, Shaker al-Abssi, earlier this year vowed revenge attacks against the army.
In June and July, 23 people were killed in battles between Sunni Muslim supporters of the government and their Damascus-backed rivals from the Alawite community in Tripoli.

Al Qaeda-linked Fatah Islam Suspected In Lebanon Bombing - 18 Dead

Back in January of this year, the leader of Fatah Islam in Lebanon, Shaker Youssef al-Absi, warned the Lebanese army that they would pay dearly for the assault on the Fatah Islam refugee camps in northern Lebanon and today's bomb blast in Lebanon which killed 10 Lebanese army personnel and 18 civilians appears to be al-Absi keeping his word. Here's the details from Breitbart:

A roadside bomb packed with nuts and bolts exploded near a bus in this northern city Wednesday, killing 18 soldiers and civilians in Lebanon's deadliest bombing in more than three years.

Security officials told The Associated Press that 10 soldiers and eight civilians were killed and 46 people wounded, while a senior military officer said 15 died. The security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak with reporters, said several bodies had been torn to pieces, complicating the count.
The army described the blast as a "terrorist attack directly targeting the army."

Now, there's a lot of talk about this bombing being a diversion for the Lebanese talks with Syria to normalize relations but I don't buy it. Fatah Islam is al Qaeda in a different uniform and they were seeking revenge on the military - sure, they are after Suleiman who leads Lebanon now and who was leading the military when the Fatah Islam camps were routed, but al Qaeda operations don't usually make simple policy statements, they are more into shock and awe and retribution. This certainly was a signal to Suleiman that he isn't safe and neither is his army.

Al-Qaida ally suspected as bomb kills 18 Lebanese

TRIPOLI, Lebanon (AP) - A roadside bomb packed with nuts and bolts exploded near a bus in this northern city Wednesday, killing 18 soldiers and civilians in Lebanon's deadliest bombing in more than three years.
Many suspected the attack was staged by an al-Qaida-inspired group to avenge a 2007 military offensive. Some questioned whether it was an attempt to disrupt a trip by Lebanese President Michel Suleiman to Syria later in the day to patch up relations between the neighboring nations.
That visit brought a key agreement for the two countries to establish full diplomatic relations for the first time, a move that could ease tensions that have fueled Lebanon's turmoil.
On Tuesday, the Lebanese parliament approved a new national unity government in Beirut that groups pro-Western factions and Syria's ally, the Hezbollah militant group—another step that Lebanese hope will move the country past three years of political crisis.
But the attack in Lebanon's second largest city cast a shadow over political progress.
The bomb, detonated by remote control, went off around 8 a.m. during rush hour just as the bus pulled to the curb to pick up passengers on a main street in Tripoli. It flung shrapnel through the bus and the nearby sidewalk crowded with people headed to work.
The bus—coming from Akkar, a region farther north where many military personnel live—was pockmarked with holes, its windows shattered. Soldiers and bystanders carried away the dozens of wounded on downtown Banks Street, which was littered with glass.
"I jumped out of my car and saw bodies in the streets," said Nabil Sebaei, owner of the nearby Rivoli theater. "Wherever I saw a body moving, I helped carry them to a car to drive them to the hospital."
"There is no religion in the world that accepts such acts," Sebaei said, visibly shaken.
Security officials told The Associated Press that 10 soldiers and eight civilians were killed and 46 people wounded, while a senior military officer said 15 died. The security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak with reporters, said several bodies had been torn to pieces, complicating the count.
The army described the blast as a "terrorist attack directly targeting the army."
Suspicion quickly fell on Fatah Islam, an al-Qaida-inspired Sunni extremist group that soldiers drove out of the nearby Palestinian refugee camp, Nahr el-Bared, in a monthslong battle last year. The fighting killed hundreds of people and destroyed much of the camp.
Fatah Islam leader Shaker Youssef al-Absi, who is on the run, warned of vengeance in a January audiotape, saying his fighters would "hunt down the followers of Suleiman," who was army commander during the fighting. Al-Absi and four Syrian militants were charged in March with a double bus bombing last year that killed three people.
However, pro-Syrian Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said the timing of the explosion before Suleiman's two-day visit to Damascus was meant to prevent "repairing the Lebanese-Syrian relations."
Suleiman's trip for talks with Syrian President Bashar Assad was the first by a Lebanese president in three years.
During their talks, the two leaders agreed to establish full diplomatic relations—something the countries haven't had since they both gained independence from France in the 1940s, Assad adviser Buthaina Shaaban said.
The agreement was a victory for Syria's opponents in Lebanon, who said Damascus' failure to allow formal ties showed it didn't recognize Lebanon's sovereignty and considered it part of Syria.