Rocket Fire Disrupts Hizbullah Ceremony in Minya

by **Admin** Mon Mar 17, 2008 12:41 am

Two rocket-propelled grenades were fired on Sunday over a ceremony for a missing Lebanese militant being attended by a Hizbullah lawmaker, a security official said.

Hizbullah MP Hussein al-Haj Hassan was addressing the event in Minya, north of the city of Tripoli, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the suspected abduction by Israel of militant Yehya Skaff, when the incident occurred.

The ceremony continued despite the rockets and no casualties were reported, the security official told AFP. There was no immediate comment from Hizbullah.

Extensive security measures had been taken for the event after threats from the area's residents to sabotage the ceremony if Hizbullah attended.

Minya is considered a stronghold of supporters of Lebanon's Western-backed government which is mired in a major political crisis with the Hizbullah-led opposition, backed by Syria and Iran.

Skaff was a militant who fought alongside the main Palestinian Liberation Organization faction Fatah and is thought to have taken part in a bus hijacking in northern Israel that left at least 35 Israelis dead in the late 1970s.

Hizbullah claims that Skaff has been jailed in Israel since for the past 30 years but Israel has denied the charge.

Hizbullah has announced that one of its goals in its fight against Israel is to free all Lebanese prisoners held in Israel -- including Samir Qantar, the longest-held prisoner in Israel who has been detained by Israel since 1980.

Beirut, 16 Mar 08, 17:56