1981 Iraqi embassy bombing in Beirut

Shia Islamist terror attack in Lebanon Iraqi embassy bombing in Beirut Beirut, Lebanon 33 52 31 N 35 29 03 E inline,title yes 1981 12 15 Lebanese Civil War and spillover of the Iran–Iraq War Suicide car bomb 61 100+ Al-Dawa On December 15, 1981, the Iraqi Shi'a Islamist group al-Dawa carried out a suicide car bombing targeting the Iraqi embassy in Beirut, Lebanon. The explosion leveled the embassy and killed 61 people, including Iraq's ambassador to Lebanon, 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 and the 1983 Beirut barracks bombings. Background Emboldened by the success of the 1979 Iranian Revolution, the anti-Baathist Shi'a Islamist group al-Dawa, with financial and military assistance from the Islamic Republic of Iran, 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.Abedin Mahan http://www.meib.org/articles/0306_iraqd.htm Dossier: Hezb al-Daawa al-Islamiyya June 2003 Middle East Intelligence Bulletin dead https://web.archive.org/web/20030715202301/http://www.meib.org/articles/0306_iraqd.htm July 15, 2003 In response to a failed assassination attempt on Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz 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.Lewis Jeffrey W. https://books.google.com/books?id=E24eVvgg6yUC&pg=PT50 The Business of Martyrdom: A History of Suicide Bombing Naval Institute Press 2012 978-1-61251-097-2 57–58 The remaining al-Dawa leadership fled to Iran and the group became an "effective proxy" for the Iranian government against Iraq during the Iran–Iraq War, which broke out in September 1980.Gordon Michael R. Trainor Bernard E. 2012 The Endgame: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Iraq, from George W. Bush to Barack Obama Random House 709 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.Merari Ariel https://books.google.com/books?id=IMTu5gwWE0kC&pg=PA29 Driven to Death: Psychological and Social Aspects of Suicide Terrorism 2 December 2010 Oxford University Press 978-0-19-518102-9 29 Balqis al-Rawi, the Iraqi wife of Syrian poet Nizar Qabbani, who worked for the embassy's cultural section, was also killed in the attack.Syrian Poet Nizar Qabbani Dies https://apnews.com/e1090608286b31493838761292984678 Associated Press News 30 April 1998 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,Pedahzur Ami https://books.google.com/books?id=Sgcmk-Gx_mIC&pg=PA81 Root Causes of Suicide Terrorism: The Globalization of Martyrdom 28 August 2006 Routledge 978-0-203-96491-0 81Markovic Vesna Future Trends and New Approaches in Defeating the Terrorism Threat IOS Press 2013 978-1-61499-272-1 Gürbuz Uğur 31–32 Chapter 3: Suicide Terrorism: The Special Case of the Suicide Bomber https://books.google.com/books?id=hYDCAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA31 though others nominate earlier attacks.Dzikansky Mordecai https://books.google.com/books?id=iex_V2M2VB0C&q=%22first+modern+suicide+bombing%22&pg=PA26 Terrorist Suicide Bombings: Attack Interdiction, Mitigation, and Response Kleiman Gil Slater Robert CRC Press 2011 978-1-4398-7131-7 Florida, USA 26Tan Andrew T. H. https://books.google.com/books?id=jZIXOlW7pgwC&q=%22first+modern+suicide+bombing%22&pg=PA35 Politics of Terrorism: A Survey 2010 Taylor & Francis 978-0-203-83201-1 35 Alternative attribution Some sources attribute the bombing to Imad Mughniyeh instead.'Ghosts of Beirut' gets Hezbollah's most wanted all wrong Abdul-Hussain Hussain https://asiatimes.com/2023/08/ghosts-of-beirut-gets-hezbollahs-most-wanted-all-wrong/ 26 August 2023 Asia Times References 40em Category:1981 in international relations Category:1980s crimes in Beirut Category:1981 murders in Lebanon Category:20th-century mass murders in Lebanon Category:Attacks on diplomatic missions in Lebanon Category:December 1981 in Asia Category:1981 building bombings Embassy bombing in Beirut Category:Islamic terrorism in Lebanon Category:Islamic terrorist incidents in the 1980s Category:1981 mass murders Category:Mass murders in Beirut Category:Suicide bombings in Beirut Category:Suicide bombings in 1981 Category:Suicide car and truck bombings in Lebanon Category:Terrorist incidents in Lebanon in 1981 Category:Building bombings in Beirut Category:Islamic Dawa Party Bombing Bombing Category:1981 disasters in Lebanon Category:Beirut in the Lebanese Civil War Category:Car and truck bombings in the 1980s Beirut, 1981