Beirut Protesters Call for International Probe of Hariri Assassination
http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=BBF984:2F72C9DMassive demonstration also calls for quick removal of Syrian troops in
Lebanon, as well as an end to Syrian dominance of Lebanese government
Protestors carry Lebanese flags, shout anti Syria slogans during a
street demonstration in BeirutThousands of demonstrators marched in
central Beirut to call for an international investigation into the
assassination last week of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq
Hariri. The massive demonstration also called for the quick removal of
Syrian troops in Lebanon, as well as an end to Syrian dominance of the
Lebanese government.
Chanting "freedom, sovereignty and independence" thousands of Lebanese
citizens marched through the streets of Beirut waving flags and
demanding that Syria end its political and military presence in
Lebanon.
The massive demonstration occurred one week after the assassination of
former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, who resigned last October
after publicly protesting a Syrian demand that President Emile Lahoud
be appointed for an additional three-year term in office.
Political observers in Beirut say the country has rarely seen the
kinds of demonstrations that have occurred since the death of Mr.
Hariri, who was a self-made billionaire and is credited with
rebuilding Lebanon following the destruction of the 1975-to-1990 civil
war.
The head of the political science department at Lebanese-American
University in Beirut is Sami Baroudi. He says while he has never seen
the kind of public anger in Lebanon that has been shown over the past
week, he does not believe it will escalate into widespread violence.
"The mood is not one of, 'let us jump once more into a civil war'.
Also, the people who like Hariri and follow him are not hard people.
They are not a violent crowd," he said. "So, I do not think it will
really resort to violence. I mean, we may see more assassinations, car
bombings, but those are the workings of specialized groups. I do not
think the population is about to launch into another round of
destructive violence."
Many opposition groups in Lebanon have blamed Damascus for the
assassination of Mr. Hariri and are demanding an international
investigation into his death.
But, the head of the Center for Asian Studies at Cairo University,
Mohammed el-Sayed Selim, says while Mr. Hariri may have had public
disagreements with Damascus, he says Syria would have too much to lose
by killing the most powerful political figure in Lebanon.
"I do not think that Syria was behind the assassination of Rafiq
Hariri because the Syrians know that this will really mean a big blow
to their status in the region," he said. "So, the fact that he had
some disagreement with Syria does not mean that Syria was involved in
this. I think there are some other powers, who do not want to
stabilize the region, who could be behind this."
Monday, demonstrators observed a minute of silence at the exact moment
Mr. Hariri was killed in a massive explosion that ripped through his
motorcade in Beirut and also took the lives of more than a dozen other
people.
Opposition groups are calling for the Lebanese parliament to resign,
and are demanding that a new government be formed. They are also
demanding a complete withdrawal of 19,000 Syrian troops in the country
and an end to Syrian dominance of Lebanese politics.
But many political observers in Lebanon and the Middle East have
predicted that demonstrations will eventually subside and that Syrian
control over Lebanese politics will remain intact.