Envoy: Iran staff inside embassy unhurt in Beirut blast

All staff who were "inside" the Iranian embassy in Beirut escaped unharmed when an explosion went off outside the building on Monday, ambassador Ghazanfar Rokn-Abadi told Iranian media. "All colleagues inside the embassy are in full health," the ambassador, Ghazanfar Rokn-Abadi, was quoted as saying by Mehr news agency. He did not elaborate on his remarks, which came before a Lebanese government source told AFP that an Iranian cultural adviser had died in the blast. The explosion occurred in southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, a stronghold of the Shiite movement and Iran-ally Hezbollah, killing at least 15 people.