25 killed in blasts near Iran’s embassy in Beirut

At least 25 people including an Iranian official have been killed and scores more wounded in two bomb blasts in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, al-Alam reports.
The explosions took place near the Iranian Embassy in Beirut on Tuesday.
Reports say Iran’s cultural attaché in Lebanon Ebrahim Ansari was among the victims of the attack. Nearly 150 people including four al-Alam staff were wounded in the bombings.
Officials said the death toll could rise.
Iran’s Ambassador to Beirut Ghazanfar Roknabadi said that all staff who were ‘inside the Iranian embassy in Beirut escaped unharmed when an explosion went off outside the building.
“All colleagues inside the embassy are in full health,” said the ambassador, blaiming the Israeli regime for the blasts.
Several buildings were damaged in the blasts on Tuesday morning.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the deadly blasts.
Conflicting reports say the blasts could have come from rockets or car bombs.
AP and the Hezbollah TV channel al-Manar quoted sources saying that the first blast was caused by a suicide bomber, while the second was a car bomb, which did much more damage.
However, this has not been officially confirmed.
Television footage showed at least two charred bodies lay on the street leading to the embassy. Debris littered the street and several cars were seen burning.
“I was waiting at the traffic sign on the street parallel to the Iranian embassy when I heard a loud explosion,” said a motorist, who refused to be identified.
“I was terrified. I saw black smoke, but I decided to continue my trip to Shweifat [southeast of Beirut],” she added.
On 15 August, 16 people were killed in a blast in south Beirut believed to be linked to the spillover into Lebanon from the Syrian conflict.