AFP - A bomb blast wounded an official of Palestinian group Hamas in the Lebanese city of Sidon on Sunday, destroying his car, military and medical sources said.

The blast sent a column of smoke into the sky, television footage from the scene broadcast by Lebanese television stations showed.

Firefighters arrived to put out the flames and Lebanese security forces quickly cordoned off the area.

A medical source at the scene told AFP that the victim suffered serious wounds to his legs while opening the door to his car, and was transported to hospital.

Security sources and local media identified the victim as a member of Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.

Hamas did not immediately issue a statement on the blast.

Tens of thousands of Palestinian refugees live in Lebanon, many of them in 12 camps across the country.

The most densely-populated of these camps is Ain al-Hilweh, which lies near Sidon and is home to some 61,000 Palestinians, including 6,000 who have fled the war in neighbouring Syria.