3 dead, 5 hurt in Beirut blast

BEIRUT, Lebanon, Dec. 26 (UPI) -- Three members of Hezbollah's security forces were killed and five wounded Saturday in an explosion in suburban Beirut, Lebanon, officials said.

Press TV said preliminary reports were the blast occurred while security personnel were trying to defuse an explosive device planted in a car belonging to a high-ranking Hamas official. The explosion came as Hezbollah was organizing a mourning ceremony to mark Ashura, the Shiite martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, the Iranian network said.

The area was cordoned off by Hezbollah's security forces and the Lebanese army was deployed to the scene, Press TV said.