MAY 21, 2002
The problem with a Beirut GP
Unfortunately, the ongoing conflicts in the region continue to haunt the city. Yesterday a car bomb killed Jihad Jibril, a leading member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. It is the second car bomb in Beirut this year thee first having killed Elie Hobeika, a militia leader who had said before the attack that he was willing to give evidence against Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon about the massacres which occurred in the Beirut refugee camps of Sabra and Shatilla in 1982. The Palestinians blamed the Israelis for both killings. The Israelis denied it.
As long as such outrages continue to occur it is hard to see Formula 1 taking the Beirut GP very seriously.