Passenger Katia Salha, who holds a dual Lebanese-French nationality, warned one of the hostesses on the plane that she received a mobile message from an ex-boyfriend wishing her a safe trip - and that she feared he had placed a bomb in her luggage, the officials said on condition of anonymity.

All the passengers were told to disembark, and the plane was searched by sniffer dogs, said the officials. Nothing was found in the woman's baggage, they added.

A Lebanese official said Salha and her boyfriend broke up few days ago after her family rejected his proposal to marry her.

'Simply she panicked when she received his message wishing her a safe trip. It was pure speculation on her part,' the source said.

Earlier in March, a man suffering psychological problems stormed Beirut's airport and warned travellers that he was carrying 'a suspicious bag.'

Authorities briefly detained the 25-year-old man, but after finding nothing illegal, they handed him over to his family for treatment.

Tension has been high in Lebanon following a series of bombings over the past few years that have targeted anti-Syrian politicians, journalists and members of security and military agencies.

Picture: Beirut International Airport on fire during the July-August War in 2006 between Hezbollah and Israel.

Source: M&C

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