Beirut: The Lebanese army said Wednesday a gunman attempted to attack on the US embassy near Beirut. The Lebanese military in a statement said that soldiers shot an assailant, who they only described as a Syrian national. The gunman was wounded and taken to a hospital.
Local media reported that there was a gunfight for almost half an hour by the US diplomatic mission in a suburb north of Beirut. The US Embassy said the morning attack by the embassy’s entrance did not cause any casualties among their staff, and that Lebanese troops and embassy security mobilized quickly.
Meanwhile, a global human rights group claimed that Israel has used white phosphorus incendiary shells on residential buildings in at least five towns and villages in conflict-hit southern Lebanon, possibly harming civilians and violating international law, in a report published on Wednesday. Lebanon Health Ministry confirmed that at least 173 people have received treatment after exposure to the chemical.
Human Rights Watch said in its report that there was no evidence of burn injuries due to white phosphorus in Lebanon, but that researchers had “heard accounts indicating possible respiratory damage”.
The white-hot chemical substance can set buildings on fire and burn human flesh down to the bone. Survivors are at risk of infections and organ or respiratory failure, even if their burns are small.
The HRW report includes interviews with eight residents in conflict-hit southern Lebanon, and the group says it has verified and geolocated images from almost 47 photos and videos that show white phosphorus shells landing on residential buildings in five Lebanese border towns and villages.
Human rights advocates say it’s a crime under international law to fire the controversial munitions into populated areas.
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