N.O.R.F Posted May 9, 2008 Lets hope the govnt and opposition see sense. Nasrallah played this wrong in my opinion by his speach and rejection of the offer from Hariri. Beirut hit by deadly street battles http://english.aljazeera.net/mritems/images/2008/5/9/1_247573_1_9.jpg Fighting intensified after Hezbollah's leader said the government's actions were "tantamount to a declaration of war" [AFP] Eight people have been killed and 15 people wounded in Lebanon, according to security sources, as the country's political crisis threatens to spiral out of control. Fighting in Beirut intensified on Thursday, the second day of anti-government protests, after a speech by Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader, in which he called a government crackdown on the Shia group "tantamount to a declaration of war". In several neighbourhoods across the capital automatic rifle fire could be heard as fighters in support of Hezbollah and the allied Amal group exchanged fire with pro-government fighters in the worst domestic fighting since the 1975-90 civil war. Hezbollah claims the government has moved against it by such actions as the launching of an investigation into the Shia group's private telephone network. Tension between the government and Hezbollah escalated when the cabinet said the group's communication network was an attack on the country's sovereignty. Hezbollah says it is infuriated by government allegations it was spying on Beirut airport and by the cabinet's decision to fire the head of airport security who is close to the opposition. Government offer rejected Saad al-Hariri, leader of the Lebanese parliamentary majority and son of the assassinated former prime minister Rafiq al-Hariri, proposed a deal on Thursday to end the crisis under which the government decisions that have infuriated Hezbollah would be considered a "misunderstanding" and be referred to the Lebanese army. In an own televised address, he criticised Hezbollah, saying: "What fate are you dragging the Muslims to - are you dragging us back to civil war?" He proposed a compromise solution spearheaded by the army - seen as neutral - to end the fighting and "save Lebanon from hell" and called for Hezbollah to lift its "siege" of the capital. The move will give General Michel Suleiman, the commander of the army - which has been neutral in the confrontation so far - the option to suspend the implementation of the government decisions. But Hezbollah's al-Manar TV quoted an opposition source rejecting any ideas for ending the conflict other than Nasrallah's demand that the measures be rescinded. Clashes were reported to have broken out in other parts of the country, with another seven people reported injured in the Beqaa valley. The Lebanese army did not participate in the fighting. But Robert Fisk, a journalist in Beirut, speaking to Al Jazeera, said that could change if the fighting escalated. "If we have a situation where one group of people move into another group's area - either Shia or Sunni - then the army may have to take much harsher measures and that immediately raises the question of 'what is the future of the Lebanese army', because it's made up of all the citizens of this country, not just one group or the other," Fisk said. Gun battles "The fighting seems to be spreading," reported James Bays, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Beirut. "It's something all the political parties said they wanted to avoid." Thursday's fighting occurred on Corniche Mazraa, a major thoroughfare in Beirut that has become a demarcation line between mainly Sunni and Shia neighbourhoods, and the nearby Ras el-Nabeh area. The violence later spread to Khandaq el-Ghamiq, adjacent to the centre of the city. Television footage showed armed and masked men taking cover on street corners next to shuttered shops. Shootings and explosions were also reported near the office of Aisha Bakkar, the Sunni spiritual leader allied with the government, and in Ein el-Tineh where the opposition-aligned parliament speaker has his official residence. 'Calm and restraint' In the US, the United Nations security council also called for "calm and restraint", urging all sides to return to peaceful dialogue. The council issued a non-binding policy statement, which lacks the force of a resolution, after a briefing by Terje Roed-Larsen, a UN special envoy to the Middle East, who warned that the situation in Lebanon was the worst since the civil war. "At the top of the agenda at the Security Council today is the issue of armed militias in the streets of Beirut and elsewhere," Roed-Larsen said, speaking to Al Jazeera after the briefing. What we are seeing today illustrates the necessities of integrating the Lebanese militias into the army. Unless this is done I fear that what we are seeing today will continue." The White House demanded Hezbollah stop "disruptive activities". "Hezbollah needs to make a choice - be a terrorist organisation or be a political party, but quit trying to be both," Gordon Johndroe, a White House spokesman, said. "They need to start playing a constructive role and stop their disruptive activities now." Unrest began on Wednesday during a general strike, called by the main labour union over price increases and wage demands, which quickly developed into a confrontation between supporters of the government and the opposition. Protests continued on Thursday, with many roads blocked by barricades of burning tyres. Source: Al Jazeera and agencies Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
N.O.R.F Posted May 9, 2008 Hezbollah 'seizes Sunni Beirut' Hezbollah gunmen are reported to have taken control of large areas of Beirut in a third day of fighting, while fierce gun battles are raging in other mixed Sunni-Shia-Christian neighbourhoods. The street battles between the opposition gunmen and fighters loyal to the governing coalition have left at least 11 people killed and 20 others wounded. A rocket-propelled grenade also reportedly hit the fence of the heavily protected residence of Saad al-Hariri, the Sunni politician and leader of the governing coalition, in Koreitem in Muslim western Beirut on Friday. Al-Hariri was believed to be inside at the time but unhurt. Gunmen loyal to Hezbollah also forced Future News, an al-Hariri TV station, off the air in the Lebanese capital. "Armed gunmen surrounded the building, stormed into the garage and demanded through the army the shutdown of the station," a senior official at the station, said. The security sources said Hezbollah and fighters from the allied Amal movement - both Shia groups - had overrun offices of al-Hariri's Future group across the predominantly Muslim western half of the Lebanese capital. The headquarters of the Future movement's Al-Mustaqbal newspaper was also surrounded by gunmen firing rocket-propelled grenades, setting fire to one floor, its managing editor said. Herbollah control In several neighbourhoods across the capital automatic rifle fire could be heard in the worst domestic fighting since the 1975-90 civil war. Hezbollah also took control of all roads leading to Beirut's international airport, Lebanon's only air link to the outside world. Beirut's port was also shut down, port official Elie Zakhour said. Tension between the government and Hezbollah escalated when the cabinet said the group's private phone network was illegal and an attack on the country's sovereignty. Hezbollah said it was infuriated by government allegations it was spying on Beirut airport and by the cabinet's decision to fire the head of airport security who is close to the opposition. Call for restraint The fighting prompted urgent appeals for calm from the international community. Saudi Arabia called for an urgent meeting of Arab foreign ministers to try to halt the violence. "In light of the dangerous escalation of the situation on the Lebanese scene, the kingdom of Saudi Arabia supports holding an urgent and extraordinary meeting of the Arab League ministerial council in Cairo to discuss the Lebanese crisis and its fallout," a foreign ministry official was quoted by the state SPA news agency as saying on Friday. The UN Security Council called for "calm and restraint", urging all sides to return to peaceful dialogue. The White House urged Hezbollah to stop "disruptive" acts. http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/89A58D9F-EE3F-47A3-A82A-A2C287DFDB1E.htm Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
N.O.R.F Posted May 9, 2008 How ironic! After the Saudis and Masaaris boycotted the last Arab League Summit, they now want an emergency meet! Saudi Arabia called for an urgent meeting of Arab foreign ministers to try to halt the violence. "In light of the dangerous escalation of the situation on the Lebanese scene, the kingdom of Saudi Arabia supports holding an urgent and extraordinary meeting of the Arab League ministerial council in Cairo to discuss the Lebanese crisis and its fallout," a foreign ministry official was quoted by the state SPA news agency as saying on Friday. The UN Security Council called for "calm and restraint", urging all sides to return to peaceful dialogue. The White House urged Hezbollah to stop "disruptive" acts. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Resistance Posted May 9, 2008 A country with a significant divisions along Christian/Muslim divide and Shia/Sunni devide and with so much foreign meddling on all corners is wonder is has not been broken up into three smaller states yet we Somalis can't agree on anything Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
