Anti-government protests entered their fourth day yesterday after a crowd of 100,000 demonstrated within earshot of the government offices in Beirut, urging the ouster of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and his anti-Syrian government.
The Lebanese army deployed more soldiers in Beirut after the killing of a pro-Syrian Shiite Muslim demonstrator raised fears anti-government protests could turn into sectarian violence.
Security sources said the military increased its forces in the Sunni districts that Shiite protesters drive through to get to central Beirut where the Hezbollah-led opposition is holding a sit-in to topple the Western-backed government.
PHOTO: AP
These districts witnessed several clashes between residents and protesters on Sunday -- from stone-throwing incidents to fights with sticks and knives.
In the most serious incident, gunmen fired from assault rifles at a group of protesters in the Sunni Qasqas neighborhood, a stronghold for the anti-Syrian majority coalition, killing one young man and wounding others.
The clash took place on the outskirts of the central Beirut rally, which has been peaceful.
The opposition said the incidents would not drive it to abandon plans for toppling the government.
The Shiite group Hezbollah, which is backed by Syria and Iran, and its allies in the opposition had taken to the streets and were holding an indefinite sit-in to force Siniora's resignation.
Many politicians and observers warned the crisis could spill over into sectarian strife in a country that has gone through two civil wars in the last century.
Thousands of protesters spent a third night in a newly built tent city in central Beirut outside the main government complex where Siniora was spending his days and nights.
Many banks and businesses were again closed yesterday in the downtown area, Lebanon's banking and commercial center. Business owners in the area have said that lengthy closures could devastate several businesses and force employers to cut jobs.
The opposition, which includes some Christians, has been demanding effective veto power in the government, which has a majority comprising anti-Syrian politicians from Christian, Sunni and Druze parties.
But these politicians say the opposition only wants to weaken the government and derail a UN tribunal that would try suspects in last year's murder of former prime minister Rafik Hariri.
A preliminary UN inquiry has implicated Syrian and Lebanese security officials in the killing, which led to Syrian forces being forced to withdraw from Lebanon last year.
Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa met Lebanese leaders in Beirut, including Hezbollah officials, to try to find a compromise, political sources said.
Moussa expressed concern at the situation and said Arab countries could not afford to be bystanders in a crisis that developed after Hezbollah's summer war with Israel.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier arrived in Syria yesterday on a brief visit to urge President Bashir al-Assad to play an active role in helping stabilize the Middle East.
Speaking from inside government headquarters where Siniora and a number of ministers have been holed up for days, Druze chief and anti-Syrian MP Walid Jumblatt reiterated the government's call for fresh talks.
FRAUD ALLEGED: The leader of an opposition alliance made allegations of electoral irregularities and called for a protest in Tirana as European leaders are to meet Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s Socialist Party scored a large victory in parliamentary elections, securing him his fourth term, official results showed late on Tuesday. The Socialist Party won 52.1 percent of the vote on Sunday compared with 34.2 percent for an alliance of opposition parties led by his main rival Sali Berisha, according to results released by the Albanian Central Election Commission. Diaspora votes have yet to be counted, but according to initial results, Rama was also leading there. According to projections, the Socialist Party could have more lawmakers than in 2021 elections. At the time, it won 74 seats in the
A Croatian town has come up with a novel solution to solve the issue of working parents when there are no public childcare spaces available: pay grandparents to do it. Samobor, near the capital, Zagreb, has become the first in the country to run a “Grandmother-Grandfather Service,” which pays 360 euros (US$400) a month per child. The scheme allows grandparents to top up their pension, but the authorities also hope it will boost family ties and tackle social isolation as the population ages. “The benefits are multiple,” Samobor Mayor Petra Skrobot told reporters. “Pensions are rather low and for parents it is sometimes
BACKLASH: The National Party quit its decades-long partnership with the Liberal Party after their election loss to center-left Labor, which won a historic third term Australia’s National Party has split from its conservative coalition partner of more than 60 years, the Liberal Party, citing policy differences over renewable energy and after a resounding loss at a national election this month. “Its time to have a break,” Nationals leader David Littleproud told reporters yesterday. The split shows the pressure on Australia’s conservative parties after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor party won a historic second term in the May 3 election, powered by a voter backlash against US President Donald Trump’s policies. Under the long-standing partnership in state and federal politics, the Liberal and National coalition had shared power
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
RSS