U.S. warns citizens against Lebanon travel after attacks

The U.S. embassy in Beirut on Sunday warned its citizens against travel to Lebanon after a wave of bomb attacks, and to exercise “extreme caution” in areas Americans normally frequent.

“Following recent bombings in #Beirut & other violence in recent months USG strongly urges US citizens in #Lebanon 2 exercise extreme caution,” the embassy said on Twitter.

U.S. nationals should “avoid hotels, western-style shopping centers, incl western-style grocery chains & public/social events where U.S. citz normally congregate,” the embassy added.

“As these sites are likely targets for terrorist attacks for at least the near term... @USEmbassybeirut further urges all U.S. citizens to avoid all travel to Lebanon due to safety and security concerns,” it said.

The United States has regularly warned its citizens against travel to Lebanon.

Its latest warning comes after a series of bomb attacks targeting several areas of Beirut.

On Thursday, a suicide car blast killed four people in the Shiite Hezbollah bastion. An al-Qaeda affiliate claimed responsibility for the attack Saturday.

On Dec. 27, a car bomb attack killed eight people including a former minister opposed to the regime of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad. That attack took place in the heart of the Lebanese capital.

Analysts say Lebanon is suffering an accelerating wave of violence that reflects the conflict in neighboring Syria, which in nearly three years has killed nearly 130,000 people.