U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Maura Connelly condemned in the strongest terms of yesterday's bombing in the southern suburbs of Beirut between the neighborhoods of Bir al-Abed and Al-Rweiss. She extended the United States' deepest condolences for the loss of innocent lives. Ambassador Connelly reaffirmed the United States' call for all parties to exercise calm and restraint.

Ambassador Connelly stressed the United States' support for the principle of human and religious rights, including the rights of minorities, and emphasized the important and enduring role Christians continue to and must play in the region in concert with other religious groups.