Gunmen fire on Lebanese minister's convoy, killing guard

Saleh al-Gharib, the minister of state handling refugee issues, told local TV he was heading to the mountain village of Qabr Shamoun when his convoy came under fire.

MENA

1 min read

The New Arab & agencies

30 June, 2019

The Lebanese are fiercely divided over the civil war in neighbouring Syria [Getty]

A Lebanese Cabinet minister said gunmen opened fire at his convoy in a mountain village near Beirut, killing one of his guards and wounding another.

Saleh al-Gharib, the minister of state handling refugee issues, told local TV he was heading to the mountain village of Qabr Shamoun when his convoy came under fire.

Al-Gharib is a member of a party allied with the militant Hizballah group and supportive of the Syrian government.

It was not clear who opened fire, but the area was tense on Sunday as supporters of a party opposed to the Syrian government closed roads to prevent Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil from touring the region.

The Lebanese army sent reinforcements to the area.

The Lebanese are fiercely divided over the civil war in neighbouring Syria.

Follow us on Twitter: @The_NewArab