Hezbollah leader links Sunnis to bombing
BEIRUT – Hezbollah’s leader blamed Sunni extremists Friday for a car bombing that killed 22 people in a Shiite neighborhood south of Beirut, heightening fears that Lebanon will be dragged further into sectarian fallout from the war in neighboring Syria.
In a defiant speech to his supporters, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said he was prepared to double the number of his fighters in Syria if Thursday’s bombing turned out to be retaliation for Hezbollah’s intervention against Syrian rebels.
“If you think that by killing our women and children ... and destroying our neighborhoods, villages and cities we will retreat or back away from our position, you are wrong,” he said.
Nasrallah said preliminary investigations showed Takfiri groups – a term for Sunni radicals – were likely behind the bombing in a predominantly Shiite suburb of Beirut, as well as other recent attacks.
“If the battle with these terrorist Takfiris requires for me personally and all of Hezbollah to go to Syria, we will go to Syria,” he said.
Gibraltar road delays raises British concerns
LONDON – Prime Minister David Cameron has asked the European Union to investigate the Spanish border checks on traffic entering the British enclave of Gibraltar that have led to long delays.
The prime minister called EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso to raise concerns that the border checks are violating the bloc’s rules about free movement. His office said Friday that Cameron urged Barroso to send an EU monitoring team to the Gibraltar-Spain border to gather evidence.
Spain has long laid claim to Gibraltar.
The latest spat involves an artificial reef being built in Gibraltar that Spain says is hurting its fishermen. Spain has floated the idea of charging border fees as compensation.
Spanish officials could not immediately be reached for comment. Both Spain and Britain are members of the 28-nation EU.
No injuries reported in Mexico earthquake
MEXICO CITY – A moderate earthquake shook Mexico’s capital Friday but caused no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake in the Pacific Coast state of Guerrero had a preliminary magnitude of 5.4. The southern state’s government said it had initiated security protocols but did not immediately report damage or injuries.
Many office workers evacuated their buildings after the quake set off alarms in Mexico City but Mayor Miguel Angel Mancera said in a message from his Twitter account that there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
Mexico City is vulnerable to distant earthquakes because much of it sits atop the muddy sediments of drained lake beds. They jiggle like jelly when quake waves hit.
The magnitude-8.1 quake in 1985 that killed at least 6,000 people and destroyed many buildings in Mexico City was centered 250 miles away on the Pacific Coast.
Associated Press
