(Telegraph-UK) Damien McElroy - Assassins who killed Rafik Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister, traveled from Iraq through Syria to carry out the attack, according to Rachid Mezher, the Beirut judge leading the inquiry into the bombing. He said that the organizers had been recruited from Islamist groups linked to Syria and operating against the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq. Investigators believe a suicide bomber drove a car laden with explosives into the convoy last Monday. Mezher said that a video in which Ahmed Abu Adas, a Palestinian Lebanese, said the attack was the work of the "Victory and Jihad in Greater Syria" group, was a genuine claim of responsibility. Abu Adas attended Beirut mosques known to be recruiting grounds for the Ansar al-Islam group, linked to the Jordanian extremist al-Zarqawi. The Beirut attack bore similarities to suicide bombings carried out in Iraq by al-Zarqawi. "We know that Adas had Saudi Arabian nationality and used his passport to travel to Iraq and Syria," said Mezher.
2005-02-21 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive