Kuwaiti Embassy In Lebanon Calls On Nationals To Leave

Lebanese Army soldiers patrol the clashes area in the southern suburb of the capital Beirut, on October 14, 2021 (ANWAR AMRO / AFP)
Lebanese Army soldiers patrol the clashes area in the southern suburb of the capital Beirut, on October 14, 2021 (ANWAR AMRO / AFP)
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Kuwaiti Embassy In Lebanon Calls On Nationals To Leave

Lebanese Army soldiers patrol the clashes area in the southern suburb of the capital Beirut, on October 14, 2021 (ANWAR AMRO / AFP)
Lebanese Army soldiers patrol the clashes area in the southern suburb of the capital Beirut, on October 14, 2021 (ANWAR AMRO / AFP)

Kuwait called on its citizens to leave Lebanon and told those wishing to travel there to wait, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

According to Reuters, the ministry said its embassy in Beirut "calls upon Kuwaiti citizens present there to exercise caution and to stay away from sites of gatherings and security disturbances in some areas and to stay in their residences."

The statement came after at least six people were killed and 32 others wounded in armed clashes in Beirut involving snipers, pistols, Kalashnikovs and rocket-propelled grenades.

The clashes erupted during a protest near the Palace of Justice in Beirut to demand the removal of Tarek Bitar, the judge heading the probe into last year's deadly Beirut port blast.

In the past few days, Hezbollah launched a smear campaign against Bitar, who demanded to question former ministers and security officials about suspected negligence in the port case.

On Thursday, the Tayouneh roundabout, situated near the Justice Palace where the Judge’s office is located, turned into a war zone, witnessing heavy gunfire and the shelling of projectiles while snipers shot from buildings.

The exchange of fire came despite the deployment of Lebanese Army patrols.

Tayouneh is considered a former front line from the civil war of 1975-1990 between Christian and Muslim areas.

The Lebanese Army failed on Thursday to identify the side that first started the shooting.

Meanwhile, Lebanon’s Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi said the “fighting started with sniper fire, with the first casualty shot in the head."



UK Police Arrest Two Men over Alleged Hezbollah Links

A protester holding a flag of Lebanon's Hezbollah during a demonstration in Istanbul, Tuesday, May 15, 2018. AP Photo/Emrah Gurel
A protester holding a flag of Lebanon's Hezbollah during a demonstration in Istanbul, Tuesday, May 15, 2018. AP Photo/Emrah Gurel
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UK Police Arrest Two Men over Alleged Hezbollah Links

A protester holding a flag of Lebanon's Hezbollah during a demonstration in Istanbul, Tuesday, May 15, 2018. AP Photo/Emrah Gurel
A protester holding a flag of Lebanon's Hezbollah during a demonstration in Istanbul, Tuesday, May 15, 2018. AP Photo/Emrah Gurel

British counter-terrorism police said on Thursday they had arrested two men accused of being linked to the banned group Hezbollah, saying their investigation involved alleged activity both overseas and in Britain.

Detectives from London's Counter Terrorism Command (CTC) arrested a 39-year-old man in north London on suspicion of being a member of a proscribed group, preparing acts of terrorism and being involved in funding for the purposed of terrorism, Reuters said.

A second man, 35, was arrested in west London on suspicion of being a member of a banned organization.

"Our investigation remains ongoing, but I hope that these arrests show we will take robust action against anyone here whom we suspect as being involved in terrorist activity regardless of whether their activity is focused here in the UK or elsewhere," said commander Dominic Murphy, head of the CTC.

Police said the investigation related to the Iran-backed Lebanese movement Hezbollah which Britain outlawed in 2019 when it classified it as a terrorist group. There was no immediate threat to the public, they said.

The two men were released on police bail until mid-July.