Armenian community of Lebanon not in danger yet

PanARMENIAN.Net - The situation in Lebanon, especially in the south, remains tensed, Shahan Kankhadaryan, the editor-in-chief of the Azdak Armenian-language newspaper told a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter. The Armenian community of Lebanon not in danger yet, but it's hard to say anything for certain, he said.



"We have cancelled all events dedicated to the 80th birthday of our newspaper, because nobody can ensure security of our guests," Mr Kankhadaryan said. The Armenian community will not yield to pressure and provocation. It will keep aside from the recurrent conflict, he added.



Amid the tension over battles in a refugee camp in Lebanon, a second explosion in as many days has rocked a suburb of Beirut May 22. A bomb went off overnight in a parking lot in the mainly Sunni Muslim district of Verdun.



Some 20 civilians and 29 soldiers are reported to have been killed.



An earlier report said Fatah al-Islam had claimed responsibility for the explosion, but that was later denied by the group. As the Lebanese government held an emergency session and appealed for national unity, Syria publicly denied any links with Fatah al-Islam.