BEIRUT, Dec 8 (Reuters) – FBI director Robert Mueller marked the first visit to Lebanon by a serving chief of the U.S. law enforcement agency with a donation of $1 million in equipment and a promise of training, the U.S. embassy said on Thursday. The FBI said it is donating the equipment to Lebanon’s forensic laboratories as part of Washington’s cooperation on security with the Arab country.

"The purpose of the visit was for Mr. Mueller to learn about Lebanese government efforts to improve their criminal investigation capabilities," an embassy statement said. It said that the FBI will also provide technical training for criminal forensic investigations. Lebanon, facing a string of bombings and assassinations  has asked 11 countries including the United States for help in training its security agencies.Twelve explosions have rocked Lebanon since Hariri’s assassination along with 22 others near Beirut’s seafront. In June, car bombs killed anti-Syrian columnist Samir Kassir and the former chief of Lebanon’s Communist Party, George Hawi.

Another car bomb in September seriously wounded May Chidiac, a Christian television journalist critical of Syria.

The U.S. Embassy said FBI and Lebanese investigators have been engaged in technical cooperation over the past year in connection with those three crimes.

It also said Mueller met with senior Lebanese officials including the ministers of justice and interior.