Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned on Saturday the Lebanon car bomb that killed eight people on Friday.

"We strongly condemn this barbaric act of terrorism. Its perpetrators and organizers should be identified and duly punished," the ministry said in a statement.

The exposion occured in a Christian district in central Beirut, the Lebanese capital. Among the dead was Brigadier General Wissam al-Hassan, head of intelligence for the internal security forces. It also injured up to 100 people, according to media reports.

The attack was widely condemned by the international community, including the United States and the United Nations.

The Foreign Ministry also expressed its solidarity with Lebanon and reaffirmed its support for the country's unity and stability.

"The incident once again demonstrates the urgent need to stop the destructive forces trying to plunge the Middle East into chaos and sow the seeds of hatred betwen neighbors in the region, representatives of various religious communities which have coexisted there side-by-side for centuries," the ministry added.

There was no claim of responsibility for the attack, the first car bombing in Beirut in four years, but former Lebanese prime minister and current opposition leader Saad Hariri was quick to blame Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime for the bombing.

Even before yesterday’s bombing, the conflict in Syria, which has raged since March 2011, had divided Lebanon into two camps: those who support Assad’s regime, such as the militant Shiite group Hezbollah and its allies, and those who oppose it, including the Hariri-led March 14 coalition.