DATE=1/3/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=LEBANON / RUSSIA (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-257733
BYLINE=RICHARD ENGEL
DATELINE=CAIRO
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Lebanese police have killed a Palestinian man
who fired grenades at the Russian embassy in Beirut
Monday. They say a note found in the dead man's
pocket indicates his attack was a protest against
Russia's military assault on Muslim rebels in
Chechnya. Richard Engel reports from our Middle East
bureau.
TEXT: Lebanese security forces killed the Palestinian
refugee after an hour-long gun battle in central
Beirut.
The man had barricaded himself in a building near the
Russian embassy and fired on police, killing at least
one officer and wounding others.
Police found weapons and a note that said the
Palestinian man hoped, in his words, to be a martyr
for Grozny -- a reference to the capital of Chechnya,
where Russian forces are attacking Muslim rebels.
Police encircled the area after the gunman, identified
as 30-year-old Ahmed Raja Abu Kharub, fired three
anti-tank grenades at the Russian embassy, killing a
Lebanese guard, injuring others and causing a panic.
Russian officials say no embassy staff were killed in
the attack.
Police in Beirut are reportedly investigating to see
if the attacker acted alone or had accomplices.
Papers found on Abu Kharub identified him as a
Palestinian refugee who came from a camp in southern
Lebanon destroyed by Israel in the early 1970s.
/// REST OPT ///
Monday's embassy attack came as Lebanese forces
battled Islamic militants in northern Lebanon for a
third day.
Nine soldiers, two civilians and an unknown number of
Islamic rebels have been killed in the fighting, which
began on Friday.
Newspapers in Beirut recently reported that Islamic
militants have been training in Lebanon, preparing to
fight in Chechnya. Lebanese security officials deny
those reports. (Signed)
NEB/RHE/GE/WTW
03-Jan-2000 11:23 AM EDT (03-Jan-2000 1623 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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