Tripoli suicide bombers kept low profile

BEIRUT: The two suicide bombers who blew themselves up in a crowded cafe in the Tripoli neighborhood of Jabal Mohsen were unknown to security agencies, according to a security source. Neither Taha Khayal, born in 1994, nor Bilal Mohammad al-Miryan Mariyan, born in 1986, both of whom hail from Tripoli’s destitute slums, had been flagged on suspicion of involvement with terror groups, the security source said.

Surprisingly, Samir Khayal, the father of Taha Khayal who blew himself up inside the Ashqar cafe Saturday, has close ties with members of the security forces, according to a source.

The family hails from the neighborhood of Mankoubeen.

Khayal apparently fled the city in October 2014 following clashes between the Army and armed Islamists led by Shadi Mawlawi and Osama Mansour. Khayal’s family expressed disbelief in the wake of the terror incident.

A paternal cousin publicly disowned him and expressed solidarity with Jabal Mohsen residents, while Khayal’s father turned himself in to Army Intelligence for questioning.

Soon after Khayal detonated his explosives vest, the second bomber, Mariyan, known as “Abu Ibrahim” blew himself up in front of the cafe.

Each bomber was strapped with 4 kilograms of explosives, according to the Army.

Mariyan was a native of the often-restive and perennially impoverished neighborhood of Bab al-Tabbaneh.

A fighter in Bab al-Tabbaneh told The Daily Star that “both Khayal and Mariyan were fighting with Shadi Mawlawi and Osama Mansour [last October].”

“Later the two were moved to the outskirts of [northeastern town of] Arsal and joined Abu Malek al-Talli,” the fighter said.

Abu Malek is a Nusra Front commander in the Qalamoun region on the Lebanese-Syrian border. The Nusra Front, affiliated with Al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility for Saturday’s deadly attack.

Both Khayal and Mariyan were living in the Mankoubeen neighborhood. With few opportunities for education and social advancement, dozens of young men from the neighborhood have joined terror networks including ISIS and the Nusra Front.

But one neighbor in Mankoubeen, who declined to be identified, described Khayal as “a calm guy.

“He did not show signs of religious extremism. His companion Mariyan was the same,” the neighbor said.

Other residents, who also wished to remain anonymous, said that Khayal had been seen in cafes or out with friends over the past week and had not been acting suspiciously.