Fear Gripping Beirut After Yesterday's Twin Bombings Claimed By The Islamic State.

Hanin Ghaddar, Daily Beast: Sectarian Disaster Looms as ISIS Strikes at the Heart of Hezbollah

If Hezbollah thought it would be protected after the Iran nuclear deal, it must think again after twin bomb strike in Beirut.

BEIRUT—While world leaders are travelling to Vienna to discuss a political solution in Syria, two explosions ripped through the Beirut’s southern Dahiyeh suburbs, leaving at least 43 people dead and over 239 others injured in the bloodiest terror attack to hit Lebanon's capital since the end of the civil war in 1990.

Hours after the blast, an alleged ISIS claim of responsibility for the attack circulated on social media, saying that 40 “rafideen”—a pejorative term for Shiite Muslims used by Sunni Islamists—were killed in the “security operation.”

ISIS and Hezbollah haven’t been in direct confrontation in Syria. Except for one clash earlier this year near the Lebanese border, the so-called Islamic State has never gone into battle with “the Party of God.” The Lebanese feared that ISIS claiming responsibility for the explosion in Beirut could be the beginning of a bloody new era.

More News On Yesterday's Terror Bombings In Beirut

Fear grips Beirut a day after twin bombings claimed by the Islamic State. -- Washington Post
Lebanon mourns 44 killed in Beirut double bomb attack -- AFP
Beirut suicide bombings kill 43; suspect claims ISIS sent attackers -- CNN
Fallout from Syrian conflict in Lebanon -- AFP
The Beirut Bombings Reflect the Minority Trap of the Levant -- Faysal Itani, Huffington Post
In Beirut bombing aftermath, many ask why IS didn't strike earlier -- Nicholas Blanford, CSM