UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged on Saturday all parties in Lebanon to protect national unity after an overnight bomb blast in Beirut.

Annan said in a statement that he was deeply disturbed to learn of the explosion of a car bomb in Beirut in the early morning hours of Saturday, and he wished the eleven people injured in the bombing a speedy recovery.

Meanwhile, Annan also expressed his great concern about the rising tension in Lebanon and appeals to all parties concerned to exert utmost efforts to safeguard the stability and national unityof the country.