A Lebanese man discharges his firearm into the air during a funeral in Beirut in 2014. (Credit: Anwar Amro/AFP/File)
BEIRUT — A stray bullet wounded a woman in Kfar Shima, Mount Lebanon, while she was attending a Palm Sunday celebration, a spokesperson for the Civil Defense told L'Orient Today.
The source said the stray bullet struck the woman's leg but could not elaborate on the severity of the injury. He added that a Civil Defense team transported the woman to a hospital for treatment.
Shooting in the air to mark various social events is commonplace in Lebanon.
Every year, an array of incidents involving stray bullets is recorded in Lebanon, where arms possession is poorly regulated.
In August 2020, a bullet, presumed to have been fired during the funeral of one of the victims of the deadly Aug. 4 explosion at the port of Beirut, hit Lebanese footballer Mohammad Atwe, leading to his death a month later.
In late 2022, caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi issued a circular calling on the security forces and regional authorities in Beirut and Mount Lebanon to take "firm and repressive measures" to prevent celebratory gunfire on New Year's Eve. In November, a plane belonging to the national carrier Middle East Airlines was hit by a stray bullet, which pierced its fuselage after it landed at the Beirut International Airport.
Correction: This article has been updated to reflect that the victim was an adult woman. A previous version erroneously referred to her as a "young girl."