Deadly Suicide Bombings Kills 6 In Eastern Lebanon

Qaa: At least six people have been killed and several wounded in a suicide bombing attack in eastern Lebanon near the border with Syria, according to local media reports.

Four suicide bombers blew themselves up among a group of people on their way to work in the village of Qaa in Bekaa valley early on Monday, security sources told Al Jazeera.

At least 19 people were also wounded in the attack. Initial reports said that the attack was carried out by two suicide bombers, but later said there were more than two. George Kettaneh, the general secretary of the Lebanese Red Cross, told AFP the blast had left “at least eight killed including three suicide bombers.”

All those killed were civilians, the mayor of Qaa told Voice of Lebanon, while three Lebanese soldiers were among the wounded. No one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. Lebanon’s national news agency said the blasts struck at 10 minute intervals and also wounded three Lebanese soldiers stationed in the area.

Al-Qaa is one of several border posts separating Lebanon and war-torn Syria. The border area has been rocked by clashes and shelling since Syria’s conflict erupted in 2011.

Lebanon’s army has fought off extremist factions along the frontier and has sought to clamp down on local cells operating in the area.

In August 2014, the army clashed with ISIS and al-Nusra Front, al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria, in the border town of Arsal. As they withdrew, ISIS and Al-Nusra kidnapped 30 Lebanese soldiers and policemen, 16 of whom were released after nearly 18 months of negotiations.