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Blasts in Beirut signal wider Middle East war

Al-Manar TV showed images of twin suicide bombings that rocked the Iranian Embassy in Beirut, killing at least 23 people. An al-Qaida-linked group claimed responsibility for the attacks. (Nov. 19) AP

Burned cars are shown at the scene after two explosions struck near the Iranian embassy killing many, in Beirut on Nov. 19, 2013.(Photo: Hussein Malla, AP)

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Explosions struck near Lebanese capital
• Wide damage done to nearby buildings
• Cause of blasts not immediately clear

BEIRUT — The bombing attack outside the Iran embassy here Tuesday shows that the Syrian civil war may be hastening open warfare between the two main branches of Islam and lead to attacks throughout the Middle East.

The admitted perpetrators of the terror attack, which killed 23 people, is the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, a Palestinian affiliate of al-Qaeda in Lebanon.

Sheik Sirajedine Zureikat, a cleric linked to the group, announced via Twitter that the attack was in retaliation against the U.S.-designated terror group Hezbollah. Hezbollah, a Shia Muslim group, is fighting in Syria on behalf of Iran and Syrian dictator Bashar Assad against rebels made up of Sunni Muslims. Al-Qaeda is a largely Sunni Muslim group.

"The attacks will be ongoing in Lebanon until Iran's party (Hezbollah) retreats from Syria and our prisoners are freed from Lebanese prisons," tweeted the cleric.

Sunni factions in Lebanon are increasingly at odds with Hezbollah, which has been supported for years by Iran, the largest Shiite nation in the Middle East. Nations lined up against Iran include the Sunni Gulf states, of which Saudi Arabia is the largest.

Hezbollah, whose political party dominates the Lebanon legislature, has been sending fighters and equipment to aid Syria in its battle to put down a Sunni rebellion that erupted in early 2011. More than 100,000 people have been killed in the war.

That conflict has been forcing Sunnis and Shiites in neighboring Lebanon to take sides and there have been outbreaks of killings between the two. But Tuesday's suicide bombing could ramp up the violence.

"Today's operation begins a new phase of bombings, with the first suicide attacks to take place in Lebanon in recent years," says Kassem Kassir, a Beirut-based analyst specializing in Islamic organizations.

"An operation at such a scale cannot take place without the backing of a regional power," he added, though he would not specify which regional power he suspected of being behind the attack."

The explosions took place before noon in the Jnah neighborhood of Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold. Iranian Cultural Counselor Sheik Ibrahim Al-Ansari was reported by the Lebanon state media as being among the victims.

"This is a direct strike on Iranian interests," said Julien Barnes-Dacey of the London-based European Council on Foreign Relations. "This is the second time in recent months that a Hezbollah-controlled area of Beirut has been targeted. So clearly there is a possibility that this is going to escalate that cycle of violence."

An Aug. 15 car bombing in the southern suburbs of Beirut killed 27 people and wounded more than 300. A less powerful car bomb targeted the same area on July 9, wounding more than 50 people.

Barnes-Dacey said many in Lebanon have bitter memories of that country's long, bloody civil war in the 1980s and have little desire to repeat it.

"There is a resilience to Lebanon, to the population at large, but also to the political leaders across the spectrum," he said. "They're very aware of the danger at hand."

The Abdullah Azzam Brigades were formed by Saleh al-Qarawi in 2000 as an offshoot of al-Qaeda in Iraq and are named after one of al-Qaeda's co-founders who was Osama bin Laden's mentor. Qarawi is believed to have fought alongside Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a former al-Qaeda leader in Iraq killed by U.S. forces in 2006.

The brigades are comprised of a number of subgroups, including the Ziad al-Jarrah battalion responsible for numerous rocket attacks against Israel. In a recent statement, Majid al-Majid, a leader in the group, called on Sunnis in Lebanon to fight Hezbollah and its interests.

The group has also voiced support for jihad in Syria and is sending fighters there to combat Assad and Hezbollah, acknowledged Mounir Maqdah, a commander of the PLO-linked group Fatah in Lebanon.

Al-Qaeda's strengthening ties with Sunni militants and terrorist groups in Syria, Lebanon and elsewhere, and the concurrent growing alliance of Shiite Hezbollah and Iran is threatening to ignite major unrest in the region, say analysts.

"Like many small radical organizations, the Azzam Brigades have taken a transnational form, and Lebanese divisions are allowing for the convergence of fighters in the country from across the region," Kassir says.

Palestinian sources in Lebanon's largest refugee camp, Ain al-Helweh, have noted the growing coordination between various radical factions and the Syrian rebel group Nusra Front, which has been labeled a terror organization by the U.S. State Department.

Many in Lebanon say they are afraid that the violence is going to spin out of control.

"We cannot keep Lebanon out of this war," said Nazida Arzouni, 47, in Beirut. "It's logical — Syria is so close to Lebanon."

Others hoped for the best.

"We have to keep doing what we do," said Michel Gabriel, a 24-year-old medical student. "Everyone has to keep going to work."

Contributing: Singal reported from Berlin; the Associated Press

Philippine typhoon: Aquino criticizes local officials

President Aquino: "The system has to rely on the local government in place"

Philippine President Benigno Aquino has criticised authorities in some areas for not being fully prepared for the devastation caused by Typhoon Haiyan.

During a visit to the coastal town of Guiuan, he praised local officials for carrying out a proper evacuation, but said it was in contrast to other towns.

Mr Aquino has been criticised for his own government's response.

Meanwhile survivors have attended church services for victims of Hayan, which killed at least 3,974 people.

A further 1,186 are missing, according to the latest official count.

In many places, including the mostly flattened city of Tacloban in Leyte province, Masses were held in half-destroyed and flooded churches. 

The international aid effort is starting to have a major impact, with Britain's HMS Daring warship joining the huge relief operation.

The typhoon - which had some of the strongest winds ever recorded on land - also left about 500,000 people homeless.

Guiuan, in Samar province, was the first town hit by the typhoon as it came ashore on 8 November. Mr Aquino said the evacuation ordered by the mayor had limited deaths there to fewer than 100.

But he suggested officials in other places had not been so well prepared.

"I just tell myself to keep it together", says Tecson Lim who is co-ordinating much of Tacloban's rebuilding

"As your president, I am not allowed to get angry even if I am already upset," he told reporters. He said that he would have to "stomach" his anger.

He also urged people to show patience. "Our main problem now is feeding 1.4 million people every day. But the government has the resources and we're moving faster."

Mr Aquino also visited Tacloban, and said the government would provide everything people needed

Earlier Philippine Social Welfare and Development Secretary Corazon Soliman acknowledged that the national relief response had been slow.

"We will double our efforts to distribute relief goods because we've been hearing complaints," she said.

'Faith strengthened'

On Sunday, thousands attended church services across the mainly Roman Catholic country.

Many came to give thanks for surviving the storm, while others prayed for their loved ones that died.

"I wish to thank the Lord. We asked for his help for all the people who survived this typhoon to be able to eat and continue a life that is hopefully more blissful," Belen Curila told AFP news agency at a service in Guiuan.

In Tacloban, Father Amadero Alvero led a service for some 500 people in the half-destroyed and flooded Santo Nino church.

"Despite what happened, we still believe in God," he said.

As the morning Masses were held, the international relief effort continued to build.

US helicopters have been dropping food, water and other supplies from the aircraft carrier USS George Washington.

The navy helicopters have been mobbed by hungry villagers, as they deliver desperately needed aid to remote areas.

President Aquino (centre) has been criticised over his government's response

Typhoon Haiyan was one of the most powerful typhoons ever to hit land

Some Sunday services were held in destroyed churches, like this one in Guiuan

Many of those attending prayers are now homeless

At the scene

Jeremy CookeTacloban

At Sunday Mass the driving rain is pouring through the shattered roof of Santo Nino church in the centre of Tacloban.

Many of the congregation sit on pews, huddled under umbrellas as Father Isagni Petilios tells them they have been strong and brave in the face of tragedy.

But outside it remains an apocalyptic scene. Most of the homes here have been destroyed. But for the first time, it seems, there are signs that people are beginning to take on the enormous task of rebuilding.

For most it starts with pulling lengths of timber and twisted roofing sheets from the piles of wreckage - to recycle into rough shelters.

But even as they do so, there is still other grim work to be completed. We watched as truck after truck of corpses were delivered to a cemetery on the outskirts of town.

More than 1,000 bodies are carefully laid out in two parallel trenches. Most of the victims go to this mass grave unidentified.

However the United Nations said people were still going hungry in mountainous regions.

"I remain concerned about the health and well-being of the millions of men, women and children who are still in desperate need," UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos said in a statement.

UK effort

Britain's HMS Daring - which is now is off the coast of Cebu City - is the latest vessel to join the relief effort.

Its crew is now preparing to despatch aid to the Panay Island, in the far west of Cebu.

Another British ship - the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious - is on its way to the Philippines.

On Saturday Britain has announced it will give an extra £30m ($50m) in emergency aid, bringing UK assistance to £50m. The DEC said donations it had collected from the public had reached £33m.

About 11 million people have been affected by Typhoon Haiyan, according to UN estimates.

It was one of the most powerful storms ever recorded on land, with winds exceeding 320km/h (200 mph) unleashing massive waves.

Health experts have warned that the worst-affected areas are entering a peak danger period for the spread of infectious diseases.

Produced by: Marco Ntobi in collaboration with Jeremy Cooke, Regan Morris and Travis Peterson.

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