Filipina among injured in Beirut blasts—DFA

Lebanese people gather at the scene where two explosions have struck near the Iranian Embassy killing many, in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2013. AP

MANILA, Philippines — One Filipina was injured from the bombing incident in Lebanon’s capital city of Beirut Tuesday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

“Our Embassy in Beirut reported that a Filipina sustained minor injuries from flying debris caused by the explosions which happened near the Iranian Embassy,” DFA Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez said in a press conference Wednesday.

The Filipina, a household service worker, had sustained cuts on her left triceps, left shin, and left cheek, Hernandez said.

She is said to be working in a residence near the Iranian Embassy. Philippine Embassy personnel are closely monitoring her while she is recuperating in a local hospital, Hernandez said.

Another Filipina, believed to also be a household service worker, was treated in a separate hospital shortly after the bombing for a cut on her nose supposed to be due to shattered glass.

It was not clear, though, if she sustained it due to the explosions.

“We are not yet certain about the exact cause of her injury but we do know that she lives in an area near the Iranian Embassy. Our Embassy is trying to ascertain her exact whereabouts and condition,” Hernandez said.

Some 23 people have been reported killed in the bombing while 140 others were injured. An Iranian cultural official was among those killed.

The Jihadist group Abdullah Azzam Brigades has reportedly claimed responsibility for the double suicide bombing saying it was a “double martyrdom operation carried out by two heroes from the heroic Sunnis of Lebanon.”

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