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Lebanon probes blast near ex-PM Hariri’s convoy

The attack in the eastern Bekaa Valley came as Lebanon's anti-government protest movement ramped up.

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Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri speaks after meeting with President Michel Aoun at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, Nov. 7, 2019. — REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir

Lebanese security forces are investigating an explosion earlier this month near the motorcade of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, his office said Sunday. 

The attack, which injured no one, reportedly took place in a mountainous part of the country’s eastern Bekaa Valley as Hariri was returning from a visit with a senior Sunni cleric. Saudi-owned TV station Al-Hadath reported that security forces found the remnants of the blast roughly 500 meters from Hariri’s 30-vehicle convoy. 

In a statement Sunday, Hariri’s office said the reports were “generally correct” and explained that he didn’t initially comment to avoid exacerbating sectarian tensions. 

"Since the convoy did not get exposed to any attack … [Hariri's] decision was to keep it secret and await the results of the relevant security forces," his office said in a tweet. 

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