Blasts near Iranian Embassy in Beirut kill 20

BEIRUT - Lebanon's news agency says 20 people have been killed and 95 wounded in two explosions that struck near the Iranian Embassy in the Lebanese capital of Beirut.

Soldiers, policemen and medical personnel gather at the site of explosions near the Iranian embassy in Beirut November 19, 2013. [Photo/Agencies]

The National News Agency says the dead include two Iranian nationals.

The mid-morning blasts hit Beirut's upscale neighborhood of Janah, a stronghold of the Shiite militant Hezbollah group. One explosion blew out the large black main gate of the Iranian mission, damaging the three-story facility.

Debris was scattered on the street and cars were on fire as people ran away from the chaotic scene.

A Lebanese security official confirmed that the casualty figures. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Attacks have targeted Lebanon's Shiite strongholds recently in what many see as retaliation by extremists for Hezbollah's role in Syria.