BEIRUT
Lebanese President Michel Suleiman has asserted that the terrorist groups responsible for a spate of recent attacks in the country were "in a state of collapse."
In a Wednesday statement, Suleiman reiterated his full support for ongoing efforts by the army and police to hunt down terrorist groups, the structures of which, he said, "have begun to collapse."
Lebanese security forces on Wednesday arrested Abdullah Azzam Brigades leader Naim Abbas, a Palestinian accused of carrying out previous bombings inside Lebanon.Police also defused a car-bomb in Beirut.
"Based on [Abbas'] confession, we found and defused a large amount of explosives planted in a 4x4 vehicle… in a parking lot in the Corniche al-Mazraa district," a security official told Anadolu Agency.
He added that the vehicle had been stolen and had borne fake license plates.
The Abdullah Azzam Brigades had earlier claimed responsibility for a November attack on the Iranian embassy in Beirut in which 24 people were killed, including the Iranian culture attaché.
Lebanon has seen a total of ten bombings since last August, most of which have targeted strongholds of Shiite militant group Hezbollah, whose involvement in the Syrian conflict next door has drawn condemnation from Sunni-Muslim quarters –both inside and outside Lebanon.
In December, the Lebanese government arrested brigades leader Majid al-Majid, who later died in custody.
And last month, Lebanese security forces arrested high-profile target Omar al-Atrash, said to have links with the brigades and other Al-Qaeda-affiliated groups such as the the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant and Syria's Al-Nusra Front.
By Paula Astih
englishnews@aa.com.tr
