Failed assassination attempt on Lebanese MP

MP Boutros Harb Lebanon's political spectrum breathed a communal sigh of relief to learn of the failed assassination attempt on member of parliament, Boutros Harb,  which, if successful, could have pushed the country further into turmoil and prevent any chance of success to reach a settlement between the rival political fronts in the country.
Police found an explosives device in the elevator shaft of a building in Badaro district’s Sami Solh Street a few hours after a man carrying a knife was subdued but managed to escape along with two accomplices.
Security sources speaking to Arabstoday  described the Harb assassination attempt as "serious and dangerous", as it included the use of advanced technology. The explosive which was removed from the elevator shaft was placed in a manner that made it difficult to detect.
The would-be assassins were discovered before they could completely arm the device, which needed exact calculations in order to determine how much explosives were needed in order to kill their target in the elevator.
The sources added that the device was prepared in such a manner to make it appear that the victim had  been killed by electrical wire friction or possibly a malfunction in the elevator.
Harb earlier said that three people had talked their way into the building to go to the roof to fix an internet problem when a security guard and a doctor, who has a clinic in the building, grew suspicious and called security forces to arrest them.
Two of them escaped but the third clashed with the two witnesses, injuring them, the MP said.
During the clash, a gunman stepped out of a BMW four-wheeler with tinted windows that had arrived at the scene, pointed his gun at the suspect, claiming to be from army intelligence, and took him away, Harb said.
Another car was seen driving in the opposite direction to the flow of traffic at  high speed, but its occupants drove away as soon as they discovered that the suspect was no longer there, he said.
According to Harb, when members of the army intelligence arrived at the scene, they discovered that the BMW’s licence plate number 285037 was forged and the occupant of the vehicle was not from the military.
The March 14 coalition MP revealed that interior minister Marwan Charbel had told him that the Internal Security Forces had received information about possible attempts on the lives of Lebanese officials through elevator bombings.
Harb later received telephone calls from President Michel Sleiman, Speaker Nabih Berri, Premier Najib Miqati, and former PM Saad Hariri to inquire about his health.
Charbel later stated from Harb's residence: “We are being affected by the developments in Syria.”
“We are aware of the assassination attempts, but no security authority can be a hundred percent prepared,” he told reporters.
He stressed: “The telecommunications data should be handed over to the security agencies in order to allow them to perform their duties.”
“All figures are assassination targets and coordination is ongoing with politicians,” he said.