2005 Lebanon bombings

Since 2004, a series of bombings and assassinations have struck Lebanon, most of them occurring in and around the capital, Beirut. This wave of bombings began with the assassination attempt on Marwan Hmade, then peaked with the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri on 14 February 2005, which touched off the Cedar Revolution and the withdrawal of Syrian troops. After the massive protests sparked by Hariri's killing, several more bombings hit Lebanon.

These bombings and assassinations came after September 2004, when the Lebanese Parliament was forced to extend the term of pro-Syrian former president Emile Lahoud, a move that was unconstitutional. The MPs, journalists, and activists that opposed this term extension were then subject to a series of slander campaigns and eventually assassination attempts.

On 1 October 2004, a car bomb exploded next to the motorcade carrying Druze MP Marwan Hamadeh. Hamadeh was injured, but survived; his driver was killed. Hamadeh had been a critic of Syria and was a member of the opposition to then president Émile Lahoud.

A massive explosion on 14 February 2005, killed former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri in Beirut, near the St. George Hotel. Also killed was the former Minister of the Economy, Bassel Fleihan, and 19 other people. About 220 others were wounded.

A group calling itself "The Nasra & Jihad Group in Greater Syria" claimed responsibility for the blast. The group had not been heard from before. A tape aired by Al Jazeera showed a bearded man, believed to be a Palestinian named Ahmad Abu Adas, claiming the attack. Adas' apartment was raided but he remains missing; however, it is now thought he was forced to admit to the plot and was killed by those who planned the assassination.

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