Deadly Blast Rocks Lebanese Capital Beirut A deadly explosion has rocked a stronghold of the Hizbollah group in the southern suburbs of Beirut, according to reports. A witness said at least three people were killed and about 20 wounded by the blast, which sent a column of smoke into the sky over the Lebanese capital, according to Reuters. The explosion hit the Haret Hreik district during rush hour and images broadcast on Hizbollah's Al-Manar TV showed firefighters putting out several cars that were ablaze. The footage showed at least one building that had its facade blown off, and several neighbouring buildings were also damaged. Beirut has been hit by a series of bombs in recent months, including one last week which killed a former minister and political adversary of the Shiite Hizbollah group. In November, 25 people were killed by suicide bombers at the Iranian embassy in southern Beirut, and explosions have also hit other nearby Hizbollah districts and Sunni mosques in the northern city of Tripoli. The conflict in neighbouring Syria has polarised Lebanon and heightened sectarian tensions. Hizbollah has sent fighters to Syria to join the forces of President Bashar al Assad, who is from the Alawite offshoot of Shi'ite Islam, while Sunni Muslim fighters have gone to Syria to fight for rebels trying to topple him.