On December 15, 1981, the Iraqi
Shi'a Islamist group
al-Dawa carried out a
suicide car bombing targeting the Iraqi embassy in
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
,
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
. The explosion leveled the embassy and killed 61 people, including Iraq's ambassador to
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
, and injured at least 100 others.
The attack is considered by some to be the second modern suicide bombing, preceded by the 1927
Bath School bombings and presaged the
1983 United States embassy bombing
The April 18, 1983 United States embassy bombing was a suicide bombing in Beirut, Lebanon, that killed 32 Lebanese, 17 Americans, and 14 visitors and passers-by. The victims were mostly embassy and CIA staff members, but also included several U ...
and the
1983 Beirut barracks bombings
Early on a Sunday morning, October 23, 1983, two truck bombs struck buildings in Beirut, Lebanon, housing American and French service members of the Multinational Force in Lebanon (MNF), a military peacekeeping operation during the Lebanese ...
.
Background
Emboldened by the success of the 1979
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dyna ...
, the anti-
Baathist
Ba'athism, also stylized as Baathism, (; ar, البعثية ' , from ' , meaning "renaissance" or "resurrection"Hans Wehr''Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic'' (4th ed.), page 80) is an Arab nationalist ideology which promotes the creation ...
Shi'a Islamist group al-Dawa, with financial and military assistance from the
Islamic Republic of Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, began to employ violence in its struggle against the Iraqi government. In 1979 and 1980, al-Dawa assassinated a number of "senior but low-profile" Baathist officials in Iraq.
In response to a failed assassination attempt on Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister
Tariq Aziz
Tariq Aziz ( ar, طارق عزيز , 28 April 1936 – 5 June 2015) was an Iraqi politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and a close advisor of President Saddam Hussein. Their association began in the 1950s wh ...
in April 1980 by al-Dawa, the Iraqi government launched a severe crackdown on the group, which included the execution of al-Dawa spiritual leader
Mohammad Baqir al-Sadr
Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr ( ar, آية الله العظمى السيد محمد باقر الصدر; 1 March 1935 – 9 April 1980), also known as al-Shahīd al-Khāmis (the fifth martyr), was an Iraqi philosopher, and the ideological founde ...
.
The remaining al-Dawa leadership fled to
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
and the group became an "effective proxy" for the Iranian government against Iraq during the
Iran–Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Ba'athist Iraq, Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. It began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for almost eight years, until the acceptance of United Nations S ...
, which broke out in September 1980.
Bombing
On December 15, 1981, a car filled with approximately 100 kilograms of explosives was driven into Iraq's embassy building in Beirut by a suicide bomber. The ensuing explosion devastated the embassy, killed 61 people, including the Iraq ambassador, Abdul Razzak Lafta, and injured more than 100 others.
Balqis al-Rawi, the Iraqi wife of Syrian poet
Nizar Qabbani
Nizar Tawfiq Qabbani ( ar, نزار توفيق قباني, , french: Nizar Kabbani; 21 March 1923 – 30 April 1998) was a Syrian diplomat, poet, writer and publisher. He is considered to be Syria's National Poet. His poetic style combines sim ...
, who worked for the embassy's cultural section, was also killed in the attack.
Impact
The attack, which presaged the 1983 United States embassy bombing and the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing, is considered by some to be the first modern suicide bombing,
though others nominate earlier attacks.
References
{{reflist, 40em
1981 in international relations
1980s crimes in Beirut
1981 murders in Lebanon
20th-century mass murder in Lebanon
Attacks on buildings and structures in Beirut
Attacks on diplomatic missions in Lebanon
December 1981 crimes
December 1981 events in Asia
Improvised explosive device bombings in 1981
Embassy bombing in Beirut
Islamic Shia terrorism
Islamic terrorism in Lebanon
Islamic terrorist incidents in the 1980s
Mass murder in 1981
Mass murder in Beirut
Suicide bombings in Beirut
Suicide bombings in the 1980s
Suicide car and truck bombings in Lebanon
Terrorist incidents in Lebanon in 1981
Building bombings in Lebanon
Islamic Dawa Party
Bombing
Bombing
1981 disasters in Lebanon