Suspected bomber in Beirut Iran embassy attack identified

BEIRUT, Lebanon – The suspected suicide bomber who attacked Iran’s embassy in Beirut has been identified through DNA tests on his father, a judge said Saturday, November 23, after the man came forward when photos of suspects were published.

The test on Adnan Abu Dahr showed that human remains at the scene belonged to his son, Mouin Abu Dahr, who was identified as one of two attackers, the judge was quoted by the National News Agency as saying.

A Facebook page reportedly belonging to Mouin Abu Dahr expressed support for Al-Qaeda and for a radical Sunni Muslim Lebanese cleric, who is a supporter of the Syrian rebellion.

The double suicide bombing outside the embassy in a southern suburb of Beirut killed 25 people and was claimed by an Al-Qaeda-affiliated group called the Abdullah Azzam Brigades.

“The government’s commissioner to the military court, Judge Saqr Saqr, confirmed that the DNA test administered to Adnan Abu Dahr corresponded with the human remains recovered from the scene of the attack, belonging to (his son) Mouin Abu Dahr, one of the two suicide bombers,” the agency reported.

For its part, the army said Mouin Abu Dahr, from Lebanon’s majority Sunni town of Sidon, was one of the two suicide bombers.

Second suspect unidentified

On Friday, November 22, the army released two pictures of men wanted for “dangerous crimes” – believed to be the suicide bombers.

The second suspect has yet to be officially identified, but the agency quoted Saqr as saying investigations were ongoing.

It was the first attack in Lebanon against interests of predominantly Shiite Iran, which is a key ally of the Syrian regime as it battles a 32-month uprising.

Tehran is also the key sponsor of the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, which has dispatched fighters to Syria to bolster the government in its fight.

The Facebook page, which had been taken down by Saturday, November 23, expressed support for Al-Qaeda and Sunni cleric Sheikh Ahmed Assir, also from Sidon, who has been at large since this summer.

Assir, well-known for his anti-Hezbollah stance, is wanted in Lebanon for his role in clashes between his supporters and the army that left 17 soldiers dead in Sidon.

On the Facebook page, Abu Dahr pledged to “avenge” Assir, who frequently expressed support for the Syrian uprising and encouraged Lebanese Sunnis to join the fight against the Syrian government. – Rappler.com