Main Suspect behind Beirut Hotels, Fnaideq Terror Cells Killed in ISF Raid

The main suspect behind terror cells in hotels in Beirut and the northern region of Fnaideq was killed during a raid in the northern city of Tripoli overnight on Sunday, reported Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3).

It said that Al-Monzer al-Hassan was killed during an Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau raid on his apartment in City Complex in Tripoli.

A shootout initially broke out between the ISF and between the suspect and his companions.

Hassan then attempted to blow himself up, but was killed before he could succeed.

Two of his accomplices have since been arrested, one of whom is wounded.

Later on Sunday, the Internal Security Forces said four of its members were lightly wounded in the raid.

Officers recovered an explosive belt from the suspect's apartment, reported Agence France Presse later on Sunday.

Hassan, who holds Swedish citizenship, is accused of delivering explosives to the Saudi suicide bombers at the Duroy Hotel, said the National News Agency.

He flew from Sweden to Lebanon seven months ago after two of his brothers were killed in neighboring Syria, where they were fighting alongside rebels trying to topple President Bashar Assad, AFP added.

In June, a Saudi suicide bomber Ali Ibrahim al-Thwaini detonated his explosives at his room in the Duroy Hotel in Beirut during a raid by General Security officers.

His accomplice Abdul Rahman al-Shenifi, who was also in the room, survived the blast but was severely injured. A third person is on the run.

Earlier in July, the army discovered numerous weapons and explosives in the northern Akkar region of Fnaideq based on confessions of detained suspects.

M.T.