Anti-Syria Protests Erupt in Lebanon
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BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) – Allies of a slain Christian government minister turned his funeral into a powerful demonstration of anger against Syria on Thursday as hundreds of thousands jammed downtown Beirut to pay their respects.
The coffin of Pierre Gemayel, wrapped in the flag of his Phalange Party – white with a green cedar emblem – was brought from his hometown and carried through applauding throngs in downtown Beirut to the St. George’s Cathedral, where the packed congegration sang hymns.
Police estimated some 800,000 participated in the rally and funeral.
In a rare move, the head of the Maronite Church, Cardinal Nasrallah Sfeir, left his mountain headquarters to lead the funeral service. Family members and dignitaries, including France’s foreign minister and the Arab League secretary general, were participating.
The country’s top Shiite politician, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a top ally of Syrian-backed Hezbollah, also attended in an attempt to show national unity.
But in the wake of Gemayel’s slaying, Lebanon is polarized to a degree not seen since the 1975-1990 civil war. Many fear Thursday’s funeral could be the first round of demonstrations that could bring the power struggle between the American-backed government and Syria’s allies, led by Hezbollah, into the volatile streets.
Near the cathedral, the sprawling Martyrs’ Square was packed with men, women and children waving red, white and green Lebanese flags and posters of Gemayel with the slogans: “We want to live” and “Awaiting justice.”
The square was the scene of mass anti-Syrian rallies in last year’s “Cedar Revolution,” which helped end Damascus’ 29-year domination of Lebanon. But in contrast to those protests, which were often festive, Thursday’s funeral rally was charged with anger at Damascus and its allies in Lebanon.
Walid Jumblatt, the Druse political leader and senior anti-Syrian figure who has accused Damascus of Gemayel’s assassination, addressed the crowd from behind a bullet-proof glass screeen.
“They will not take away our determination to live … and to be free,” he vowed.
Still, he said he was open for a settlement with the government opponents.
“We are for dialogue.”
Many in the crowd burned pictures of Syria’s president and Lebanon’s pro-Syrian leaders. One man carried a large banner with the pictures of Lebanon’s assassinated leaders and the words: “Syria’s killing regime. Enough!”
Much of the venom was directed at President Lahoud, a staunch Syria supporter, and ralliers held signs calling for his removal. Mr. Lahoud was at the presidential palace, where security was heavy amid fears that protesters would later march there to attempt to force the president to resign.
Anger also was pointed at Hezbollah, which had been calling for mass protests of its own in an effort to topple Prime Minister Saniora’s government dominated by opponents of Syria. After Gemayel’s killing, the terrorist group said it would not hold demonstrations for the time being – but it will likely feel the need to respond with its own show of strength after Thursday’s funeral.
“If they (Hezbollah) have 30,000 rockets, we have 30,000 words. They do not scare us,” said Joseph Hanna, a 45-year-old rental car shop owner and Gemayel backer who came to the rally to show his support of Saniora’s government.
Gemayel, 34, was killed Tuesday when two cars blocked his vehicle at an intersection as he left a church and assassins shot him numerous times through a side window. His driver also was killed.
He was the sixth anti-Syrian figure killed in Lebanon in two years, including Prime Minister Hariri, a Sunni Muslim slain in a massive bomb blast in Beirut in February 2005. Syria has denied any role in the slaying of Gemayal and the other figures.
“Lebanese unity, consecrated by the blood of Rafik Hariri and Pierre Gemayal … and all the martyrs to freedom, is stronger than their weapons than their terror,” Mr. Hariri’s son Saad – now the leader of the anti-Syrian majority bloc in parliament – told the crowd in Martyrs’ Square.
He lauded “Lebanese unity,” mentioning Sunni Muslim and Christian leaders, though no Shiites.
While some supporters called for revenge against Syria and its allies, Gemayel’s father – a former president – and the Maronite Church quickly called for calm, hoping to avert an explosion of violence in the multi-sectarian nation of 4 million.
In the church service, Cardinal Sfeir urged the Lebanese to come together and save their country.
“We should firmly take a stand and get together in understanding and love,” he said. Gemayel’s wife wept, leaning on the shoulder of his mother.
The funeral rally was a major show of Sunni-Christian unity – particularly because Gemayel’s right-wing Phalange Party fielded the main Christian militia during Lebanon’s 1975-90 civil war between Muslims and Christians in which 150,000 were killed.
It was also a revival of the mass protests that followed Hariri’s assassination. That powerful popular movement, along with international pressure, forced Syria to withdraw its army from Lebanon after nearly three decades of control. Anti-Syrian politicians were voted into power, breaking the hold of Damascus’ allies.
But for the past year, Lebanon has been simmering with tensions between the two blocs – with Shiites backed by Syria and Iran, and government and its Sunni Muslim and Christian supporters backed by America and the West. America has made the country a key front in its efforts to rein in Damascus and Tehran’s power in the Mideast.
Though Hezbollah officials said the group would take no action in the coming days to allow emotions to cool, they accused the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority of capitalizing on Gemayel’s murder for political ends.
“We were on the verge of taking to the streets,” said Hussein Khalil, political adviser to Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah. “The government coalition was in an unenviable position and was in a very big impasse. They needed blood to serve for them as kind of oxygen to give them a new life.”
Many in the anti-Syrian coalition say Gemayel’s assassination is part of an attempt to prevent the creation of an international tribunal for suspects in the Hariri killing, including several Syrian officials.
Hezbollah and its allies quit Mr. Saniora’s government when it gave initial approval for the U.N. mandated court. They demand the government be changed to give them considerably more power or else they will launch their street campaign to bring it down. Mr. Saniora has also asked the United Nations for technical help in finding Gemayel’s killers.