By Xinhua,
Beirut : Five Lebanese soldiers were killed and 24 wounded Monday when a car bomb tore through a military bus in the northern part of the country, the al-Manar TV reported.
The bus was heading towards the Lebanese capital when the blast occurred.
According to the report the bomb was placed in a car that went off at 7.45 a.m. (545 GMT) ripping through the military vehicle.
Another TV channel LBC reported that 24 soldiers on board the bus, were hurled away about a dozen meters, in the impact of the blast. The explosive-laden car was completely destroyed, it said.
Meanwhile, the police and army troopers have sealed off the area.
The army said the explosion was aimed at destabilising the country and efforts to secure Tripoli that has been the scene of deadly sectarian violence in recent months.
In August, another explosion targeted a bus carrying Lebanese soldiers in Tripoli. At least 14 soldiers were killed in that attack.
Tensions in northern Lebanon have somewhat reduced in the past few weeks after the country’s two rival factions, Sunni and the Alawites, signed an accord to maintain peace.
Lebanon’s President Michel Suleiman Monday vowed to root out terrorism from the country.