On this day in 1982, Israeli-backed Lebanese Phalangist (Arabic: al-Kataeb) militiamen entered the Sabra and Chatila Palestinian refugee camps in West Beirut, and slaughtered at will. Age or gender were never a consideration, as the elderly, women, children and even toddlers became easy prey.

Courtesy of Mondoweiss

The death toll has never been verified, ranging from 800 to 3,500, which is testimony to the destruction wrought by the Phalangists that many bodies were never uncovered.

The massacre occurred under the watch of the Israeli Defense Force, who at the time had gained control of West Beirut, guarded the entrances to the camps, and lit flares at night to provide visibility to their Lebanese allies.

An Israeli investigation, the Kahan Commission, found then Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon personally responsible, and recommended his resignation from the Israeli Government.

The blogosphere was swarming with tributes to the victims of the massacre.

DesertPeace posted a video tribute [WARNING: graphic content]:

Political blog, Pulse, recounted the gruesome tragedy:

At six on Thursday evening. In the first penetration, three hundred and twenty men were brought on thirty trucks. Four gangs invading from four approaches. These were the most blood-addicted, rape-happy, battle-addled of militiamen, men long ago surfeited on outrage, men who required ever more extreme atrocities to stir their glutted senses. Ever wilder, ever sharper.

Israel lit the sky for them. White phosphorus flares trailing and dancing. Fire above like a terrible sun in the ceiling, a sun switched on in anger, while the children are sleeping…

Carelessly, they shot small children too, and their annoying mothers. Plus things that shrieked and things that ran. House to house, to the inner room, to the furthest wall. Hot work. Soon they shot with greater care, enjoying the sport, slashing and chopping and stabbing too. They swigged whisky and araq, snorted cocaine from flesh and knife blades.Throughout Thursday night bulldozers levelled the buildings closest to the camp entrance. A machine was sent in to dig trenches. Wailing and shooting whirled around the streets. People shut themselves in, waiting. They whispered amongst themselves, guessing the direction of the slaughter, or making excuses for the noise. Some still didn’t know the extent of it, or didn’t believe. Tomorrow would make believers of them.

They huddled in the darkest dark. Outside the night sun shone; inside not even a candle. Dark as dark as ignorance. The dawn brought smoke and a smell of blood.

On Friday the massacre intensified. Reached its fiercest height in the area surrounding the Gaza Hospital. Finally waned to a dribbling halt around 8am on Saturday morning. A long debauch. More than 36 hours of it.

Christof Lehmann offers his tribute at the Sabbah Report:

Twenty nine years have past, my goodness. I'll never forget you wonderful people. Neither will I forget the extremes of inhumanity and human compassion, the ugliness and beauty, the laughter and grins while murdering with a disregard for humanity and life impossible to comprehend, and the tears and cries of deepest despair and suffering no human being, not even an animal should experience.The days of terror I had to share with you were also the greatest lesson on human greatness, and the deepest beauty of the collective Palestinian Spirit, I ever had to endure.

Confused ? So am I.

Even after 29 years I still can't comprehend the full impact the experience has had on me, nor on you. At least I had the privilege to leave after it was possible to get out of the ruins of Sabra and Shatila. You could not. It makes me sad, really. So sad that I never returned to face the demons in my memory and my bad conscience over leaving you behind. There is so much I don't know because I left you behind, beaten, bloody in body mind and soul. Broken glass that shines like a diamond in the sun, crying out to the world, “let us live in peace”. The only thing I know with absolute certainty is this:

Neither you, nor me, nor anyone should ever experience the inhumanity of pure unleashed evil, and until my last breath I will do what I can to prevent anything like Sabra and Shatila from ever happening again.

As you see, I am utter failure.

David Samel brought attention to Israel's other crimes during its invasion of Lebanon in 1982 in a comment at Mondoweiss:

As terrible as these atrocities were, they were only icing on the cake of Israel’s June 1982 invasion of Lebanon, based upon a false pretext, that took the lives of about 15,000 to 20,000 Lebanese and Palestinians. “Liberal” Israelis actually point to Sabra and Shatila to demonstrate how progressive their country is. After all, hundreds of thousands of Israelis demonstrated against the massacres, and the Kahan Commission held bigwigs Sharon and Eitan indirectly responsible. The movie “Waltz With Bashir” showed Israeli veterans sensitively coping with their memories and their guilt. But the whole summer of 1982 was filled with savagery that exceeds the more recent 2006 Lebanon and 2008-9 Gaza bombings/invasions combined. It’s a crime that Begin and Sharon died (in Sharon’s case, virtually) without ever having to answer for this high-water mark of mass murder and state terrorism.

Marcy Newman at Body on the Line argues that marking the anniversary is in vain while the plight of Palestinian refugees continues to be ignored:

What I find especially disturbing about all of this is how everyone remembers the anniversary of the Sabra and Chatila massacre but no one seems to remember the destruction of Nahr el Bared refugee camp. It is rather convenient that Mitchell and his Lebanese cohorts discussed Palestinian refugees, but of course did not reveal any tangible information about their right of return. For Palestinians from Nahr el Bared this right of return is now two-fold: first to their camp and then to Palestine. If only that first step could be eliminated and they could return home immediately.

This is why I am feeling like I am against anniversaries. Anniversaries, ideally, should be a time when you reflect upon the person/people/event. It should make you act in a way that honors that memory. The only real way to honor the memory of the massacre in 1982 or the destruction of Nahr el Bared in 2007 is to fight for the right of return for Palestinian refugees. But no one is talking about that, nor are they talking about reconstructing Nahr el Bared

Twitter tributes also flooded in:

@motantawi: A tragedy is a tragedy. Commemorating 9-11 doesn't outdo or erase the memory of the tragedy of Sabra and Chatila so why the comparison?

@rida_faisal: So why is it that the victims of Sabra and Chatila don't get a massive memorial ceremony? News coverage? Oh right, it's not American blood.

@HamzehLattouf: #Sabra and Chatila are ugly crimes, the uglier crime was committed by the “civilized world” for letting the murderers get away with it

@fadiseikaly: and here are my 140 characters dedicated to the victims of Sabra And Chatila in 1982. I hope in his coma, Sharon sees their faces every day.

@omerrcelik: Today is the 29th anniversary of Sabra and Chatila massacre. The day of one of the most brutal attacks in history, carried out by Israel

@IamDiijah: The world will not observe a minute of silence for the 3,500 innocent Palestinian victims of Sabra and Chatila

@KShihabi: #Sabra and Chatila massacre 16-19/9/1982… No one has paid the price yet #Palestine #FreePalestine

@hamna_: Tomorrow, Sept 16-17th 1982 marks the Sabra and Chatila massacre. But of course, no one will remember as much as 9/11 was remembered.

While the remembrance of Sabra and Chatila is widespread across social media, the Lebanese blogosphere remained largely mute on the massacre.

As with the entire Lebanese Civil War, an air of forgetful silence is embraced by many Lebanese, as evident by the blogosphere's near complete avoidance of the Sabra and Chatila anniversary.

For many Lebanese, the Civil War and its atrocities remain a dark memory that one never mentions, suppressing the wounds.

Rather, life goes on as normal, oblivious to the crimes against humanity once carried on Lebanese soil.

As such, no Lebanese perpetrator of the Sabra and Chatila massacre, or any massacre in the Lebanese Civil War, has ever been brought to justice.

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A small protest in the front of the Syrian embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, ended in violence on Tuesday, 2 August 2011, when pro-regime loyalists stormed the gathering.

Protesters were demonstrating in solidarity with victims of the Syrian regime's brutal crackdown on protesters, when supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad arrived in a counter-demonstration.

Pro-regime loyalists from the Lebanese Ba'ath Party and the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) allegedly confronted the protesters chanting pro-Assad slogans, and violently attempted to disperse the anti-Assad crowd.

An anonymous eyewitness account published at Jadaliyya, and independent ezine affiliated with the Arab Studies Institute of Georgetown University, describes the initial scenes of confrontation:

We stood about three rows deep and faced the embassy as well as the Lebanese security detail. Suddenly, a group of men began running towards us from the side of the bank, led by a tall thin man in his fifties with white hair, whom I later learned is a member of the Ba`th Party in Lebanon. Almost as if in a drill, the man with the white hair lined up the group of what appeared to be migrant Syrian workers facing us. He lifted his hands, as if he was the conductor of a grand symphony, and an almost surreal chanting war unfolded. We began chanting, “from Beirut to Hama, we are one people,” and they countered, “with our blood and our souls, we support you Asad.”

The eye-witness account continues to describe how the pro-regime loyalists tried to threaten and intimidate protesters to leave. This story is mirrored in a YouTube video from the protest by lebansyria that shows a group of menacing pro-Assad loyalists hastily moving to meet the anti-Assad protesters:

And then, the attack began:

When they attacked us, they all came together and they came at all of us indiscriminately. We were easily overwhelmed, and at first, they came after anyone with a camera. Men picked up chairs and threw them at us, others took off belts and began whipping us with them, and others pushed, punched, and kicked at us. I saw a friend, one of the political activists I respect most in Lebanon, being punched in the face. He reeled backwards, and both he and I began to (me) walk and (him) stumble backwards into a parking lot where I, for some reason, thought I would be safer. As he stumbled backwards, his attacker pushed him, and my friend fell silently like a heap of bones and meat onto the concrete floor.

I walked towards him, as the attacker–still not satisfied–kicked him while he was on the ground. As I bent down over my friend, I saw the attacker move on to another friend, grabbing her by the neck and swinging her around the street in a bizarre semi-circle. He then turned around towards me and my friend who was still on the floor. The man, who was shouting in a Lebanese accent, was heavily muscled in a white T-shirt, tanned and had short black hair. He approached me, shouting and swearing and accusing me of having a camera and taking pictures. I am ashamed to say this now, but I stood up, looked at him and pleaded with him to not hurt me or hurt my friend any further. I opened my hands, looked into his eyes, and said “I don’t have a camera or a phone. I don’t have anything. Please don’t hurt me.” At that moment, even as the words were leaving my mouth, I hated myself for feeling so vulnerable, and so afraid. He had won. Furiously, the attacker turned away and towards others.

The attack was also filmed and uploaded onto YouTube:

What was intended to be a peaceful protest ended with broken bones, with local police admitting they were helpless to stop the pro-regime loyalists:

Three people went to the police station on Bliss Street (Maghfar Hubaysh) to file a complaint against those that had physically harmed us. They were turned away by the police, who told them that the attackers had political backing and that there was nothing the police could do. Thus a broken hip, a cracked skull, and countless black eyes and swollen body parts were all meted out by a group of shabab [guys] confident in the knowledge that they are not accountable to anyone.

Syria has always had a polarising effect on its smaller neighbour Lebanon.

Lebanese politics is defined by one's relationship with the Syrian government, and is thus divided between pro-Syrian and anti-Syrian camps.

Lebanon's own identity has struggled to find unity between those who perceive the country as an entirely separate entity from Syria, and those that wish to emphasise the special ties between the two neighbours. Certain sections of Lebanon, such as the Ba'ath Party and SSNP, contend that the two states should unite as a Greater Syria, rejecting the current political map as a colonialist project.

Consequently, Syria has constantly been an emotive subject in Lebanese affairs, as evident by the violent outcome of Tuesday's protests.

The attacks sparked outrage as Lebanese questioned the absence of security personnel during the attack.

Nadine Moawad:

Some protestors suffered heavy injuries from the beatings and are still in the hospital, while many others suffered beatings, cuts, and bruises. Activists headed to the Hobeich police station to report the attacks and found zero cooperation from the police. The perpetrators must and will be prosecuted for their illegal attacks and all Ministries are held accountable for failing to protect their citizens to express themselves freely and peacefully. This is an atrocity and we must not be silent about it.

Elias Muhanna at Qifa Nabki condemned the exclusive fiefdoms political factions have established throughout Beirut and Lebanon as a whole:

Every six months or so, when I visit my family in Beirut (who live in this neighborhood), there are more and more SSNP banners hanging from walls and lampposts. Lately, it seems, they’ve been getting out their frustration with the situation in Syria by intimidating peaceful protesters.

I think it’s worth highlighting something the author of the Jadaliyya post insisted upon: these protesters were brought together by their condemnation of the atrocities in Syria as well as their disgust with “the March 14-March 8 political schism that has polarized Lebanon for six years now.” They deliberately chose to demonstrate in this neighborhood [Hamra] so as to avoid being labeled as supporters of any particular political party. I encourage any like-minded readers of this blog who are living in Lebanon to find a way to get involved, join these protests, speak out, and help to end the rule of amped-up Baathist goons on the streets of Hamra.

The Angry Arab initially doubted that SSNP members were involved in the violence, but later conceded that the SSNP along with Ba'ath Party members took part in the attack:

I posted yesterday about the thuggish treatment of independent leftists (some of them I know) in Hamra when they protested against the criminal Syrian regime. I heard about the involvement of SSNP (which has been transformed by its leader, As`ad Hardan, into a tool of the Syrian regime). I asked SSNP folks who are among my Facebook friends to explain and I was sent assurances that they were not involved. I now know otherwise. In fact, I heard that SSNP members in Hamra have been harassing those who have been protesting against the Syrian regime.

Lebanon has regularly been an exception to the rest of the Arab world when it comes to the right to protest. In fact, Beirut has witnessed an inundation of public protests in recent years regarding a plethora of issues.

However, an uneasy silence is being imposed on the country in a climate where Lebanon's major political players are keeping the country out of Syria's internal chaos for fear of retribution from the Assad regime.

This does not sit in accordance with Lebanon's longstanding tradition for the right to protest. That regime loyalists, with political backing, are allowed to violently stifle public opposition against the killings in Syria is certain to rile many in the country who consider their democratic right to protest sacrosanct.

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

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Lebanese newspaper Assafir has since reported the Hamdan has been released, but not before a Twitter and blogger storm publicised the news of his initial arrest.

Lebanon's online community swiftly erupted in outrage at Hamdan's detention, with a Facebook page dedicated to the release of Hamdan attracting more than 2,000 supporters within a few hours.

Zeid Hamdan (left) with Mahmoud Radaidah. Image by Flickr user alhussainy (CC BY 2.0).

Twitter also witnessed an outcry, with the #FreeZeid hashtag quickly circulating as a means to express anger at the arrest.

@LeShaque: @SleimanMichel Are you not seeing what is happening to your Arab buddies who do not like criticism? #

@bilalhouri: The Lebanese Government opened Zeid's song on YouTube in August 2010, it finished buffering today. #OntorNet

@nmoawad: #FreeZeid and arrest Mohammad Iskandar!

@TajaddodYouth: Pr. @SleimanMichel we know your commitment to #freespeech. Zeid Hamdan must be released. Essential freedoms threatened #Censorship #FreeZeid

@hindmezaina: ”The role of art & music isn't to flatter the fragile egos of insecure public figures.”http://t.co/SqJXPJy #freezeid

Concerning to many Lebanese is the threat to freedom of expression posed by state authorities who hastily imposed a law dating back to the French mandate, against those who openly criticise the President of the Republic. Hamdan's brief arrest has reignited calls for reforms to protect free speech.

Karl Sharro, at Karl reMarks, wrote a response shortly after news of Hamdan's arrest surfaced, dubbing the detention as a form of “intellectual intimidation”:

… this incident has now given an all too realistic view of the contemporary culture of repression and arbitrary use of power in Lebanon. The song in question, General Suleiman, is a light-hearted reggae number that has has provoked the humourless authorities to go after Zeid Hamdan, in all likelihood for the ‘offence' of demeaning the position of the President of the Republic. This archaic residue of the French mandate period has often been used by the authorities to clamp down on the freedom of expression.

While it's tempting to defend Zeid on the basis that the song isn't actually offensive, I think this is the wrong approach. What we need to defend here is the freedom of expression, without qualifications, and push for abolishing the archaic laws that provide the legal basis for such arrests. No politician or public figure should be beyond critique, and they shouldn't be allowed to use those laws in a desperate bid to gain the respect that their political record hasn't gained them. The role of art and music isn't to flatter the fragile egos of insecure public figures. Let's say a resolute no to these forms of intellectual intimidation and fight for our freedom to offend the clique of fools that is ruling us.

Oussama Hayek highlights the absurdity of Lebanon's archaic Lèse majesté law:

The news that Zeid Hamdan was briefly arrested for insulting our Dear Great Leader President General Suleiman (henceforth DGLPGS) was unsurprising, but nonetheless a sad reminder of the atavism of Lebanon's legal system. Indeed, every once in a while we hear of one person or another arrested for insulting DGLPGS.

In a normal country with a real “majesté” such as Britain, the laws against insulting the Queen or King have not been prosecuted since the 18th Century. In Holland, calling the Queen a whore can set you back a €400 fine.  Lebanon seems to be in a league with fine beacons of progress like Thailand in enforcing Lèse majesté laws.

The problem is that DGLPGS is not a near-deity like the Thai royals. He is merely an elected official in a ramshackle democracy. Even ramshackle democracies can't function if elected officials cannot be (harshly) criticised.

Elie Fares at A Separate State of Mind, contends that while the law deployed to arrest Hamden is absurd, critics should tame their outrage at their own country:

What we also do is bash our country left and right, up and down. And every direction in between those anytime something we do not agree with happens.

Let me illustrate this.

The most recent example is the arrest of Zeid Hamdan today, after being accused of libel against the Lebanese president, following a rather useless song.

The moment Zeid was taken into custody, Lebanese twitter and Facebook users were up in protest. The Facebook page dedicated to freeing Zeid gained about 2000 followers in a few hours. All good, right? I mean, the arrest was ridiculous. The law upon which the arrest was based needs to be revised. It’s no longer 1926 when our constitution was “inspired” by the French one at the time. France changed theirs. It’s high time we change ours.

Another side of the Zeid Hamdan arrest was a lot of Lebanese people bashing their country, some calling it a useless place, others calling it a failure of a nation, while some called it a piece of sh*t.

Just because our political system is in a perpetually fragile equilibrium doesn’t mean the whole system is a failure. Just because power transfers easily doesn’t mean the country is a failure.

And you know what the most ridiculous thing is, our expectations are so low of anything Lebanon-related that we’re willing to believe any rumor that defames the country as a whole.

The freedom to criticise, satirise and hold accountable a state's political leaders is a key pillar of democracy. For Lebanon to be truly democratic, it must respect the principle of freedom of speech and expression.

Hamden's arrest is, thus, a necessary reminder that Lebanon still falls well behind the expectations of a fully democratic state.

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Hezballah leader Hassan Nasrallah has exclaimed that God had given Lebanon an opportunity to rid itself of a crippling debt, and become a “rich country” by providing it lucrative offshore oil and gas reserves. There is, however, one major conundrum preventing Lebanon from exploiting such a resource: the reserves potentially lie in a disputed maritime border zone with Israel.

If there were ever a problematic area of the world to discover new oil and gas reserves, this is it. Unfortunately it also happens to be one of the world's most volatile conflict zones. Instead of being a source of economic development, the offshore deposits in the Eastern Mediterranean threaten to become yet another layer to the Israeli-Lebanese conflict as both sides adamantly persist on disputing maritime boundaries.

The two states remain technically at war, having fought the last war in 2006. Only a UN peacekeeping contingent is maintaining a fragile peace along the border, but it is a force that would hastily vacate the premises should Israel and Hezballah ever decide to enter a new round of bloodshed.

The maritime dispute has indeed raised the prospects of renewed conflict as Nasrallah declared Hezballah was “stronger and better” than ever before, vowing to strike Israeli oil facilities if the Jewish state were to attack Lebanon over the dispute.

Point of contention

Google map of disputed maritime zone - Courtesy of Qifa Nabki

The two states are in disagreement over their actual maritime border, which will thus determine each country's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

As Israel and Lebanon do not have diplomatic relations, they have each sought UN intervention to mediate in the dispute.

A negotiated boundary between Israel and Cyprus in 2010 angered Lebanon as Beirut claims Israel placed its border far too north, encroaching on Lebanese sovereignty.

Lebanon has submitted its own documents to the UN disputing Israel's border claim, insisting that its EEZ extends several kilometres further south.

Political blogger, Elias Muhanna, has covered the story at Qifa Nabki, including a Google map indicating the points of contention (above):

• In 2010, Cyprus signed an agreement with Israel establishing their maritime borders, and used the same Point 1 as a terminal reference.
• By then, Lebanon had determined that Point 1 was actually too far north and the real point of intersection between all three countries was several kilometers to the south, known as Point 23. It filed papers with the UN to that effect in July 2010.

An alternative map posted in the comments section of Qifa Nabki‘s post shows, however, that Israeli exploration of coastal oil and gas reserves falls well within Israel's EEZ.

Ghassan Karam, also on Qifa Nabki‘s site, plays down the significance of the dispute:

There are many maritime borders that are is dispute all over the world. So we add another one, that is not a big deal.

What is important in the case of Israel-Cyprus-Lebanon is not the 200 nautical mile EEZ since the distance that seoarates Lebanon from Cyprus is under 150 nautical miles. The only potential problem is to agree on the point from which the maritime border starts; which point on the coast, and the angle at which the line is drawn in order to make coastal points on both sides equidistant. But even that does not need to be resolved since no country is under an obligation to go to arbitration.

But what if the gas/oil is discovered in a field that stradells both sides of the border? The most likely principle is that the resources go to the country that extracts first.

Rani Hazbani, on Qifa Nabki's blog, argues that Lebanon should stop complaining about Israel exploring potential oil and gas reserves, and start drilling in its own waters:

It seems that also here, as in other places, the Lebanese government is more keen on talking, complaining and making troubles for Israel than on doing positive deeds for Lebanon. For their own good the Lebanese should stop complaining and start drilling as soon as possible.

The big international money will not be kind to any nation that will use force in such situations, they are stronger than Israel & Lebanon. Lebanon should declare the best line for her and start exploring intensively the sea bottom NORTH of the Israeli line without regard to any thing that Israel say or does. That is what most nations do. Lebanon should demand that her technical people will participate in all the stages of the exploration. There are Lebanese expat doing all kinds of jobs in that industry in the Gulf, they should be brought back to Lebanon. As things are now in Lebanon it is possible that if Lebanon will not act cleverly and fast soon you will see, off its coast, all kinds of strange operators: Iranian-Nowegian, Norwegian-USA-KSA, and even Chinese etc. And again Lebanon will be left behind.

The discovery in the Eastern Mediterranean is a major win for the United States, according to Lebanon Spring. Israel with substantial oil and gas reserves will renew the strategic importance of the US-Israeli alliance, potentially making the US less dependent on Arab oil:

The recently discovered oil and gas in the Eastern part of the Mediterranean will not only change the balance sheets of the involved countries, but also the balance of powers towards the side of the US – via Israel

We, in Lebanon, are still yet to confirm the legal internal framework for the whole process, and more likely to have a disputed area with Israel. The Turkish part of Cyprus has threatened today Greek Cyprus that it is entitled to block any sea deal with neighbouring countries (although this was Turkey’s position in 2008 according to Wikileaks).

But in the mean time, and according to the World Energy Council, Israel’s Shfela Basin (south of Jerusalem) holds 250 billion barrels of recoverable shale oil. This will put Israel in the third place in such reserves after the US and China. I recommend reading the above mentioned article in full (The Globe and Mail – thanks Kamal to the link), as it gives a rough estimation on how the US could plug the gap in its energy demand, while Israel is playing a role in that.

It’s probably something for the regional policy makers, dictators and Arab Sheikhdom to take note of...

As the two rival states dispute their maritime border, no evidence exists as yet that any offshore deposit straddles the contested border region.

Israel has commenced drilling of deposits within its EEZ, and is thus, well ahead of Lebanon in benefiting from a resource that could dramatically benefit both states.

Perhaps it is time for Lebanon to stop talking of grandeur and begin some drilling of its own to ensure it receives a slice of the lucrative pie.

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Once dubbed the ‘Paris of the Middle East', Beirut received its warzone reputation as a result of the 1975-1990 Lebanese Civil War that effectively turned the city to rubble.

Two decades later, and despite the complete restoration of downtown Beirut, the phrase still persists in certain international corners, to the frustration of some Lebanese and Beirutis.

Cafes in downtown Beirut. Photo credit: Wikipedia, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license

Thus, a Twitter and blogger stir was caused last week when a headline in Australia's The Age newspaper invoked the infamous phrase.

Titled “Suburban street like ‘downtown Beirut' after shooting, firebombing”, the article refers to a criminal shooting allegedly involving Lebanese Australian gangs. The ‘downtown Beirut' reference was quoted by a witness and local resident, and sensationally deployed by The Age as the story's headline.

The headline raised the ire of several on Twitter:

@LebAgg: There are no longer shootings & bombings in #Beirut, @LebanonNewsURS shows the real DT Beirut :) http://bit.ly/j5W3kN

@khaladk: Suburban #street like ‘downtown #Beirut' after #shooting, #firebombing: http://t.co/0cr5ghR Welcome to #Melbourne! #WTF #Lebanon

@matthewteller: @justimage @antissa Headlines & standfirsts notoriously prone to be disconnected from articles. Happens all time. This egregious example.

@justimage: @matthewteller @antissa true but do editors always add misleading quotes to headlines? it's more offensive given Au's massive Leb population

It also caught the attention of Lebanese blogger and Beirut resident Jad Aoun, who has taken it upon himself to track global media negatively referencing the ‘looks like Beirut' phrase.

As a means to correct the false and outdated association of Beirut with war, Aoun launched the Look Like Beirut Awards, whereby a certificate is posted to the individual who has used the phrase.

Aoun has kept count of the amount of ‘looks like Beirut' jibes he has encountered:

Have a look through the archive and see for yourself how many people compare Beirut to destruction. Over 120 recent uses since January 2009, and still counting!

There was no chance The Age's use of the phrase was going to be missed by Aoun, who awarded a Looks Like Beirut certificate to both the witness - only known as Andrew - and the journalist behind the story, Paul Millar:

So since Andrew has no last name and there are no further details on him, I will be sending him his Looks Like Beirut certificate via the journalist Paul Millar. I’ll also be including an additional certificate for Paul in recognition for that spectacular title for his article.

Aoun went on to post an email exchange he had with The Age journalist Paul Millar regarding the derogatory reference to Beirut.

Dear Paul,

Thank you for shedding light on what “downtown Beirut” looks like – we Lebanese bloggers have found your latest article very fascinating. So much so that I’ve decided to (snail) mail youa “Looks Like Beirut” Certificate for your hard-work and dedication in keeping the out-dated cliche “looks like Beirut” alive. I understand that the phrase was used by Andrew Anonymous but the fact that you had to title your report with it speaks magnitudes to your dedication to the phrase.

I would appreciate it if you can also pass on Andrew’s certificate to him as well since he decided to remain in the shadows. In the event you are interested to see what downtown Beirut currently looks like, I have some photos available on my blog.

You should receive both certificates by mail soon.

And here’s his response:

Hi, as I said to your friend, reporters do not put headlines on stories. Hope this clarifies your misunderstanding.

Is it me or is there some type of disconnect between my email and his response? Paul, I apologize that I failed to read your job description, I should have known that you do not do titles – I mean they need to be handled by more responsible people I guess. Nevertheless, the certificates have been sent out though I expect you to shred them as soon as they land on your desk.

Social media campaigns have previously proven effective in changing one's perception. Aoun's efforts to educate those unaware of Beirut's transformation has won the applause of the Lebanese blogger community tired of the war-like connotations. Aoun remains prepared to send as many Look Like Beirut certificates as necessary. Paul Millar should be receiving his in the coming days.

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Qifa Nabki has provided a list of the new cabinet ministers, as well as a breakdown per political and sect affiliation.

The new Beirut government has, however, already run into obstacles, with two ministers reportedly resigning only hours after the formation of the cabinet.

Hezballah and its predominantly Christian allies triggered a collapse of the previous unity government led by Saad Al-Hariri in January 2011. The Hezballah initiated move was motivated by a deep concern that Hezballah members were to be indicted by the United Nation's Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri, Saad's father. The Syrian-backed March 8 alliance successfully enticed Druze leader Walid Jumblatt to renounce his allegiance to Hariri's March 14 bloc, providing Hezballah and its allies with the necessary numbers to form a majority government without its March 14 rivals. Despite gaining sufficient numbers to form cabinet on its own, the March 8 alliance struggled through five months of internal wrangling over who to allocate which cabinet seats and portfolios. Dismay was also expressed at the exclusion of women in the new government, with all cabinet posts awarded to men, and thus, attracting accusations of Lebanese politics as an exclusive gentleman's club:

Mustapha at Beirut Spring blogged his disappointment at the exclusion of women from the new government:

I can’t get over the fact that there’s not a single woman in our new government. Not one. Zip. Zero.. Zilch.. Nada.. None..

This can’t be right. In the past, we always had a few token female ministers as a symbolic gesture to the aspiration that women, in an ideal world, should be well represented. They humored the feminists as it were, but this time they don’t even pretend to care.

Indeed, the announcement of a new government evoked little enthusiasm amongst Lebanese bloggers, most of whom have long been disenchanted with the country's inefficient political elite.

Karl reMarks analysed the latest development, however, as a significant shift from consensual to majoritarian politics, with the new March 8 government abandoning the previous national unity model between all major parties in the country.

Whether this provides Lebanon with greater governance remains to seen. Karl reMarks certainly is not optimistic about any short-term prospects, but the evolution from consensual to majoritarian politics is, nevertheless, a progressive move worth noting:

I called this ‘the Cabinet of Curiosities’ because in many ways it breaks away with convention to overcome the paralysis in the Lebanese political system and the failure of March 8 to offer a solid programme of governance. The unequal number of Sunni and Shiite minsters is one of those ‘innovations’, dispensing with the token gesture of appointing women ministers is another. The one distinctive aspect about it is that it created a de facto parliamentary opposition for the first time in a long while in Lebanon. Said oppositions consists primarily of March 14, which will have to restructure itself to perform this role effectively. I have little faith that this will actually happen, this being the flipside of March 8’s inability to govern. Nevertheless, the success of both in playing those roles would represent a significant step forward for Lebanese politics which has been stuck for too long in the vicious cycle of consensual politics.

It is equally impossible to discuss a new development in Lebanese politics without referring to the main patron, Syria.

The latest turmoil in Syria has kept Lebanon's key political players on edge, and several commentators in the blogosphere offered their observations on Syria's role in the formation of the new Lebanese government, beginning with Karl reMarks:

With the visible decline of the Syrian regime’s authority at home and abroad, it’s worth considering what this statement actually means. Had the Syrian regime really considered the formation of the cabinet a priority, why did the process take so long among a group made up exclusively of its ‘allies.’ Furthermore, with the caretaker government of Saad Hariri bending over backwards to accommodate the Syrian regime since the uprising in Syria started, and going out of its way to avoid confronting it, I wonder what the significance of a Syrian-influenced cabinet is. The one aspect that this reveals is how dependent the entire Lebanese political class is on Syrian patronage, to the extent that it has become entirely incapable of any independent decision making in the absence of clear signals originating from Damascus. The emphasis on the STL in this context is misplaced, for all intents and purposes Syria has been exonerated by the STL leaving Hezbollah in the dock. It’s worth nothing that the West has declined to use the STL as a tool against the Syrian regime during the past few weeks when it was desperately looking for soft instruments to apply pressure.

Prophet:

Finally, a Lebanese cabinet was formed .The question is why now, and not four months ago. For months ago, Syria was more stable, the Arab spring has not reached the Syrian coast, and Assad’s fear of the STL was his main concern. Now that his whole regime is in danger, The STL seems to be a less of a threat, compared to his fear of loosing his power, and everything else. A friendly Lebanese government might suit him better than a political vacuum. Ghassan’s point of Marada and HA securing the defense and interior mister is very important, but not so much of the fall out of the STL’s indictment, but more so of the need to protect Syria’s border and infiltration of Syrian’s opponent from Lebanese soil.

If this cabinet receives a vote of confidence from the parliament, we will see a sudden policy and practical changes in the ways Lebanese authority deals with Syria and the trouble facing Assad’s regime. More security will be put on Lebanese /Syrian borders, more security cooperation will take place, and more open support of Syria’s regime will be announced by this cabinet.

Also, the possibility of a wider conflict would require a friendly cabinet, that would support HA’s resistance policy as well as Syrian position against the US and Israel.

The formation of Lebanon's new government comes at a crucial time as the Syrian turmoil shows no signs of abating. Lebanon's political life is largely dependent on the power that sits in Damascus. Should that power become unstable, Lebanon's government will face an impossible challenge of preventing a ripple effect in the tiny, divided country.

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American blogger and Syria expert, Joshua Landis, conducted a video interview with exiled leading opposition activist Ammar Abdulhamid on the Syrian unrest.

Speaking on Landis' blog, Syria Comment, Abdulhamid was questioned on a variety of topics concerning the Syrian revolution, from the dangers of a sectarian breakdown, to the regional implications of a potential collapse in regime.

It is a must-see interview that not only airs an opposition perspective into the protests, but also challenges the faceless opposition to provide answers to the questions many Syrians are asking.

One important question is that of sectarianism, and whether the opposition can safeguard Syria from descending into Lebanon and Iraq-like sectarian conflicts.

Abdulhamid appeared to brush off the threat of sectarianism, not entirely reassuring for concerned viewers on Syria Comment.

Mina:

Sorry Ammar, you are a little bit naive by tryig to explain that sectarianism is not an issue, the MB are not an issue, things won’t go as in Iraq. You say: the regime has been manipulating the people into sectarianism, this is their line, though you admit that there are corrupt elites from all grounds: Alawites, Sunnites, Christian and Druzes. My first point is corruption is a world problem.

To come back to sectarianism. Didn’t you know that it’s after victory that problems start, with the fight for power? Do you think everybody is as young and politically naive as you are? Why don’t you try to learn from what is going on in Egypt, Tunisia, and Libya?

why-discuss:

Ammar Abdulhamid talks about ‘reconciliation’ a la Mandela but who is the Syrian Mandela? and ‘no revenge’, he expects that the army will ‘hopefully’ adhere to the revolution and turn their back to their previous leaders.
He talks like this is going happen in a click of the finger, the transitional period will be short…then after everything will be slow but great. It sound like Syria will become Brigadoon

“We are not naive…” Really?

norman:

any violent transfer of power is going to lead to sectarian violence and war, Ammar knows that and that is why he is trying hard to say that it will be different , (( IT WIL BE NOT)), civil war is at the door, The only chance is for the Baath party and the regime is to offer passage to free multiparty elections while the army maintaining civil order and preventing ethnic and religious war.

What i fear is that the opposition goal has changed to getting rid of the regime not free election to See who can win,

Farouk qaddour:

The so-called secular opposition in Syria will be the first victim of any swift regime change and those people will find themselves in the streets with no friends except a hypocritical west that is too busy fighting more important wars or trying to solve their own domestic,mostly economic problems.the vacuum in Syria following 50 years of albaath domination left the country with no organized leadership and that opens the door to fundamental groups which will claim to be the only viable solution to Syria’s problem. The regime is directly responsible for this horrible situation that can only benefit organized religion.

One commenter questioned Abdulhamid's commitment to regaining the occupied Golan Heights from Israel, captured in the 1967 Six Day War:

Sophia:

Golan back but no war with Israel. 12000 druzes and 4 villages dismissed. Let’s do business with Israel.

No visible emotions on his face during the whole interview but the only time his eyes get animated was around the question about Iran and Israel (around minute 46). No comment on this because I cannot read his mind but one explanation could be his personal ideological commitment to this as all people in Arab countries who identify with the west, they usually don’t want to embrace the what has been a classical Arab cause (Palestine and occupied Arab land by Israel). Or his opinion on this is determined by his sponsorship and he doesn’t want to lose his financing. it could also be both.

Lebanese blogger and political analyst, Qifa Nabki, criticised Abdulhamid's claim of a “Syrian exceptionalism” in preventing the country from lapsing into civil sectarian conflict, as opposed to its neighbours:

(1) Joshua Landis & Ammar Abdulhamid at Blogging Heads: This interview is highly worth watching in its entirety. Landis asks all the relevant questions, and Abdulhamid — a Syrian dissident exiled in Washington and a leading opposition activist –provides a very interesting take on several issues, including: (1) the origins of the protests; (2) the multi-faceted character of the opposition; (3) what happens the day after the regime falls; (4) the future of Syria’s relationship with Iran and Israel.

On the question of Syrian sectarianism, Landis challenges Abdulhamid to respond to those who fear that Syria could disintegrate into a sectarian civil war, like Lebanon during the 70′s and 80′s, or Iraq after the US invasion. Abdulhamid’s response, to my mind, is not particularly convincing. He argues that Syria is exceptional; it is unlike Lebanon and Iraq, and will find a way to withstand a sectarian conflagration because it is “a country of minorities”. Furthermore, this exceptionalism is something that the regime itself has always touted.

The logic is easy to pick apart. Lebanon is even more diverse, minority-wise, than Syria and this did not prevent a sectarian civil war. Furthermore, it strikes me as problematic to use regime propaganda to bolster a claim of Syrian exceptionalism. Note that I am not arguing that Syria is actually a sectarian powder-keg; I just don’t think that Abdulhamid’s argument is very convincing.

As the violence in Syria continues to spread, many uneasy questions remain unanswered. One point that brings all parties in accordance is that Syria has most certainly passed the threshold of no return. The road ahead, however, remains obscure.

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

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Unrest in Syria enters its second week, as anti-government protests continue in their bid to oust President Bashar al-Assad.

Death toll figures vary between 60 to 300, with hundreds more detained, after two weeks of clashes between protesters and security forces in Deraa, Latakia and other towns.

Syrian protesters have posted a large number of video clips on YouTube of the violent repression by Syrian security forces. Warning: Video contains graphic footage showing protesters shot in the head Here's one, uploaded by Islam1tv, showing protesters shot in the head.

More videos and information (Arabic) can be viewed on the Facebook page “Youth Syria for Freedom“.

The Damascus Bureau has created a list of those detained during the protests to ensure their plight is not forgotten.

Solidarity in Milan for civil unrest in Syria, 26 March, 2011. Image by Flickr user Milano 26 marzo 2011 (CC BY-ND 2.0).

Internal dynamics

Whilst it may seem that the unrest in Syria is a natural progression of the Arab revolution spreading throughout the region, there are unique dynamics in Syria that distinguish it from other Arab states.

Syria is a multi-confessional and ethnic state on similar lines as its troubled neighbours Iraq and Lebanon, with a history of sectarian violence.

The Assad regime belongs to the minority Alawite sect - an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam - who number roughly 15 per cent of the population. Christians and Kurds also form sizeable minorities, each constituting approximately 10%. The remaining majority are Sunni Arab.

Consequently, a sectarian undertone exists to the current crisis in Syria.

Late Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, father of Bashar, infamously slaughtered thousands in the city of Hama in 1982 to crush a rebellion by the Muslim Brotherhood.

With the exception of the Kurds, Syria's minorities generally favour Assad due to his secular political stance, and fear a potential Islamist emergence to power.

Syria expert and blogger at Syria Comment, Joshua Landis, has been covering the events and offers the following background:

The Dara’a protests prompted Alawites in the coastal city of Latakia to gather in large numbers in a central square, Dawwar az-Ziraa, to show support for their embattled President. Many have changed their Facebook profile images to a picture of Bashar. Syrian Christians and other religious minorities that together make up a further 13% of the Syrian population have also shown broad support for Assad, who has defended secularism. Many have worked themselves into a panic about the possibility that political upheaval will empower Islamists, as happened in Iraq. Almost 1 million Iraqi refugees live in Syria, their presence a cautionary tale of regime change that has gone wrong.

Key to a successful revolution is splitting Syria’s elites, which comprise the Alawite officer class of the security forces and the great Sunni merchant and industrial families, who preside over the economy as well as Syria’s moral and cultural universe. If those elites stick together, it is difficult to envisage widespread but scattered popular revolts overturning the regime. But an Alawite-Sunni split within the elites would doom the regime. The cohesion of those elites, though, is a question of social class as much as of confession.

The centrality of Dara’a in the uprising may have limited its appeal to the urban elites. The dusty border city marked by tribal loyalties, poverty and Islamic conservatism may inspire Syria’s rural masses who suffer from poverty, a prolonged drought and joblessness, but mass demonstrations there have frightened Syria’s urban elites. Even those who share anger at repressions and hope for liberation with their rural counterparts still fear the poor and the threat of disorder.

Counter demonstrations in support of Assad have been held in a number of Syrian cities, highlighting the anxiety of some minorities. Below is a YouTube clip of a pro-government rally in north east Syria, uploaded by ELIEELIAS187. It shows protesters chanting: “With our soul, with our blood, we sacrifice ourselves for Bashar”:

Landis received this eye-witness account from a German friend who attended the pro-Assad rally in Aleppo, disputing claims that anti-government protests were held in the city:

There was and still is a big demonstration in progress in Aleppo today (Friday 25th), pro-regime of course. There was apparently a small one of some 200-250 people early this morning, basically in support of the wage hikes announced yesterday, and around 12h30 a bigger one started brewing around Sa’d Allah al-Jabiri place, which just kept growing throughout the afternoon. Now (21h00 local) it’s spread out into the residential areas; Mogambo place is absolutely packed with people dancing and a band standing by. I’d send you pictures except that internet is so terribly slow that I can’t upload anything at home.

Obviously it’s orchestrated to some extent, the usual slogans, the usual underclass youths, the usual black leather clad security guys watching from a distance. But everyone we’ve talked to in the last weeks seems genuinely pro-regime, and now doubly so in light of the reform announcements. Guys I was watching Al Jazeera coverage of violence in Sanamayn today were only muttering “kazzab, kazzab” [lies, lies] under their breath.

The Kurds are of course a different matter; the Ashrafiyya and Shaykh Maqsud suburbs were completely sealed off last Monday (21st, Nawruz)–but that’s true every year and nothing special happened this year to my knowledge. Otherwise every one here that I’ve been able more or less to gauge is delighted over Egypt, Libya, you name it, but sees no parallel to Syria, invokes arguments you already know (Dera’a is being led by families with older antipathies to the Asads and allies of Khaddam), and wouldn’t remotely think of calling for Bashar’s removal.

On your blog today you mention reports of demonstrations in Aleppo, by which I understand are meant anti-regime demonstrations. Do you have more information on this, like where exactly they were? Certainly didn’t see anything and have trouble imagining it.

Another Syrian friend in Aleppo wrote to Landis stressing that President Assad enjoys significant support:

As an addendum to yesterday, I can certainly understand why a lot of Syrians are upset with foreign coverage of the crisis (going so far as to besiege the Al Jazeera studios in Damascus). The events in Deraa, Latakia and elsewhere are indeed critical and deserve wide attention.

But for maybe 90% of the Syrian population, the reality they are living is the sort of pro-regime support that was witnessed yesterday in Damascus, Aleppo and other cities. The festivities in Aleppo, Syria’s second largest city, lasted a good 12 hours and involved I would guess in the low tens of thousands of people–but this was not covered or even mentioned by a single news outlet that I have seen. This isn’t to say that all those people are diehard Bashar fans; it was a beautiful day Friday and there were many families out just to see what was going on. That these demonstrations are “organised by the regime” is kind of a cliché, however, seeing that any thinkable civil group involved (unions, youth clubs, etc.) is tied to the regime on some level; but “fabricated,” as a recent comment posted to your blog suggests, they most certainly are not.

Landis himself writes a detailed piece revealing a Syria dividing between pro and anti-government camps, with a silent majority yet to make its decision:

Syria is dividing into sides – those that will fight the state and those that support the president or fear revolution. The silent majority is still sitting on the side lines, but they will not be able to do so for long if order collapses. The army is sticking by the President, a main difference with Egypt or Tunisia. So long as the army remains united and obeys the President, it will be hard for the opposition to take over parts of the country or bring down the regime.

There were pro-Bashar demonstrations in many cities yesterday, such as Hassake, Homs, Latakia, Damascus in several places, and Aleppo, but there were equally anti-government demonstrations in a number of places, which are now increasingly calling for an end to the Baath Party and the fall of the regime – isqat al-nizaam. I have spoken or corresponded with people in Latakia, Aleppo and Damascus today. Aleppo and Damascus are calm. Latakia is not. The Republican Guard and the army have entered the city to end violence. The people were cheering them on from the balconies in the Sunni neighborhood, I am told.

My wife’s family in Latakia is divided over what is going on. Her mother claimed that although they had not been able to go down town, she insisted that she was very confident in the wisdom of the Syrians. She said they would never be dragged into civil war. She said that in most parts of the city yesterday, people had been out and about.

My brother-in-law, Firas, who lives in American, a Christian quarter near Shaykh Dahr, the downtown area where the demonstrations and shooting took place yesterday, has left the city with his Christian wife and children. He was very anxious when we spoke to him in Latakia this morning at his work place. He said that all the Sunnis who work in his company were saying that there were foreign Sunni elements in town that no one recognized. He believed that they were involved in the fighting yesterday in center city. A number of Syrian military and police were taken to the hospital, having been shot. Firas said that they did not have arms because they were not supposed to shoot at the demonstrators due to the President’s orders. The opposition had arms.

Pro-government people believe that there is an organized and armed opposition that came into town to start a fight and spread false rumors about Alawites from the Mountains coming into town to attack Sunnis, etc.

See the Facebook site:   بلدي حبيبي … ممنوع الفتنة …ويلو اللي يعادينا ؟ In order to see how people are talking about the “Mukharabiin,” the foreign intruders who no one recognizes in Latakia. They say that the unknown intruders entered both Sunni and Alawi neighborhoods and yelled about how the opposite sect was coming to destroy them and “burn them down.” They claim that there was an organized effort to stir up sectarian distrust and violence.

In Jableh, a mixed city just south of Latakia on the coast, there was a big demonstration made up of the entire city (`an bikrati abiiha) on Saturday night. They chanted: “wahid, wahid, wahid, Sunni wa Alawi wahid.” “One, one, one – Sunnis and Alawis are one. ”

Another Christian friend from Latakia – no relation – said that there was a much more organized opposition in town and a lot of sniper shots going on still. There is a fire at the prison, he said. He pooh-pooed the notion that a foreign element was in town, but said that the organized opposition was home grown.

The comments section of Landis' blog is indicative of the split and cynicism among Syrians. Whilst it may appear to the West that the protests in Syria are largely driven by pro-democratic ambitions, for Syria's minorities it is an anxious fear of an Islamist undercurrent.

SOURI said:

I read repeatedly on revolutionist websites calls from Wahhabis to the revolutionists to attack ammunition depots and steal them. Those Wahhabis are not peaceful demonstrators, they are attacking security, military, and government buildings. They have been burning Assad’s portrays. This is not peaceful demonstration, it is an organized Wahhabi-led rebellion.

The war time has not come yet since that the demonstrators remain too few. However, should the Islamists pour in large numbers into the streets, the war plan must be implemented without hesitation. No surrender. Surrender means the end of Syria, and the end of Alawis before anybody else.

This is not a “democracy revolution,” it is a sectarian insurgency launched by Wahhabis. This is what we have been saying all along and I am glad that some American diplomats have the courage to say things as they are.I just don’t agree with some of the details they mentioned, especially those related to the Kurds and their potential state.

Shami said:

Let them here leo ,Souri’s comments sound the same than to those of the regime.(and similar in one way or other to Dr Landis’s last comments)
The “’salafi,ekhwani,israeli,cia ,kurdish ,wahhabi’” plots of the regime do not work anymore .
They even used this trick when they killed their enemies like Sheykh al Khaznawi.

One commenter questioned the motives of detained Egyptian-American tweep @Battuta:

Solitarius said:

I’m surprised by those who go out of their way to claim that this Egyptian man is innocent (twitter acount: Battutta)

Being neutral and objective means just that.. it doesn’t mean that you should automatically side against the government just because it has a bad history. Really as Jad asked, what is an Egyptian American who passed by Israel doing in Syria taking pictures in times like these? I personally wouldn’t dare take pictures and go anywhere.. Hell even in normal circumstances i wouldn’t take any pictures if i’m close to any government, police or Baath building

clearly there are people who are over doing it in terms of their humanism to the point of being ridiculously naive. People wake up.. It’s that governments lie.. but governments also recruit people and send spies all the time.

Another lashed out at anti-government protesters for undermining the social fabric:

Jad said:

The anonymous rebels are now all defencive and talking about how good, intelligence, patriots and not sectarian they are and that everybody should trust them!
How about telling us and those young Syrians who paid their lives for their call of ‘who the hell are you’, what are you planning to do after destroying the social fabric of Syria and how and what are the ’saving’ plans you propose for poverty, corruption, unemployment, economy, policies (domestic and international) and how are you going to free Jolan?!
They also sound a bit desperate and begging everybody to send Aljazeera millions and billions and zillions of messages.
I guess if they stop spreading sectarian language, be honest and have welcoming national and rational language and have names, ‘maybe’ they will convince more people otherwise what they are doing is using the blood of Syrians for keeping the violence circle running full speed.

An Israeli commenter argued that Israel also fears the emergence of an Islamist state should anti-government protests succeed, oddly placing Tel Aviv in support of its old foe Assad:

Shai said:

It really does amaze me how dependent some people are on Israel. How even now, when the Arab World is experiencing an awakening never before seen in the history of the region, Israel has some “role” to play in all this. Every development in the region, according to some, is a function of Israel.

While Israel does indeed more closely resemble KSA and Iran than Syria, I can assure you that neither are deemed “friends”. Those same Wahhabis in KSA preach far worse against Jews (not Israelis) than any Syrian ever could. They are far more dangerous to us Jews in the region and worldwide, than any Mufti in the secular-Arab world.

Syria is at a crossroads, with high stakes for regional stability. Anti-government protests appear to be polarising the country, with many - including regional powers - fearing the lingering presence of the Muslim Brotherhood. All the more reason why US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has opted to stay out of this potential revolution, labeling Assad a “reformer”.

This post is part of our special coverage Syria Protests 2011.

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I argued that the lack of blogger coverage of the rally organised by former Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri on Sunday 13 March, was due to a general sense of apathy among bloggers.

This was met with criticism from blogger Beirut Spring, who suggested that bloggers were not losing interest, but were fearful of losing social media friends and networks if they were to express their political opinions.

Political taboo?

Here is Beirut Spring's contention:

There is one big omission that would have completely changed Antoun’s conclusions: Bloggers didn’t stop writing about politics in Lebanon because they are no longer influenced by politicians. Bloggers stopped writing about politics because they are becoming Twitter friends, and they are realizing that their sharp divisions are making it awkward to write their real point of view in polite social media company.

In the old days, bloggers didn’t care about what they wrote because they were almost anonymous. They felt free to write their real, controversial points of view. But now, there’s timidity in the air and tremendous peer pressure to say what is SocialMedially acceptable (I just invented that phrase). Perhaps GVO [Global Voices Online] should start looking more at Facebook. Over there, people say what they really think.. They are social media members too, aren’t they?

Protestors young and old in Beirut on March 13, 2011. Image by George Haddad, copyright Demotix (13/03/11).

Beirut Spring highlighted the case of blogger Ali Seif, who came under fire on Twitter for tweeting supportive comments of controversial Lebanese political figure Samir Geagea. Geagea is the leader of the right-wing Christian Lebanese Forces, and achieved notoriety for crimes in the Lebanese Civil War 1975-1990 and a war-time alliance with Israel.

Seif responded to the criticism on his blog, SeifAndBeirut:

Lebanon is in turmoil all the time for one reason – the people DO NOT know how to talk, or accept, the opinions of others in the nation. Simple enough. You support March 14 you get bashed. You support March 8 you are bashed. Stop bashing the shit out of everyone, and just accept the fact you do not share opinions! Canada has 4 main political parties – we do NOT judge the other person because they vote for Conservatives or for the Liberals. That's just stupid.

Look at Twitter yesterday, for heavens sake look at the chat rooms and Facebook – the Lebanese were bashing eachother back and forth all night (or all day for them). So this brings me to yesterday.

I tweeted the following: I am actually only waiting for Samir Geagea’s speech. I love his charisma, and I love how he delivers his speeches. That is MY opinion. I was not jumping up and down tweeting about how I think he’s amazing, how I want everyone to like him …

Whilst Seif's example demonstrates an element of political taboo on the Lebanese blogosphere, it does not imply that the entire Lebanese blogosphere is shying away from political debate.

Indeed, there is a thriving online Lebanese political blogosphere, with renowned political bloggers such as Qifa Nabki, Angry Arab,  Nadine Moawad, Land and People, and Beirut Spring himself. The bloggers themselves are not only an indication of an active political discussion. One simply needs to look at the number of comments their posts generate to capture a greater sense of the conversation.

Easier to avoid debate

There is, however, the counter to this argument - as put forward by Beirut Drive By - that only political bloggers are free to post their opinions, thus making a distinction between political and apolitical blogs:

Politics is largely off-limits unless you are a political commentator/blogger. There are a few political angles, women’s rights, or palestinian rights that seem to be acceptable to talk about, that is as long as you agree with what’s being said. It’s just easier to avoid politics and just stick to talking about ads or restaurants or what the traffic is like today.

Reinforcing this point of view is Craig commenting on Beirut Spring's post, who remarks that social media compels users to flock to the most popular point of view for fear of exclusion:

Yes, I’ve noticed that too. I’m not a big twitter fan but I was following some of the feeds for some of these uprisings. Seems to me that people feel compelled to adopt the most popular/socially acceptable position. And not only that, once they adopt that position they engage in a kind of competition to see who can repeat the talking points the most often and the most places. It’s more like an experiment in the dynamics of real time group-think than it is “social media”.

Blogger Sietske in Beiroet attended the rally on Sunday, but did not blog about it for the reasons mentioned by Beirut Spring:

Totally agree. I went to the rally but did not write about it because I do not believe it is very helpful to the situation these days to profile yourself politically.

The above accounts indeed suggest that an element of caution exists on the Lebanese blogosphere when it concerns political debate.

A portion of Lebanese bloggers define their work on their political expertise, whilst others engage in a variety of topics and thus may avoid political discussion so as to not offend their readership, as Seif experienced.

However, to argue that Lebanese bloggers generally avoid debating Lebanese politics is to narrow the definition of what is deemed political.

Is discussing politics confined to participating in the repetitive bickering of sectarian factions ad nauseum?

If we are to use such a narrow definition, then yes, fewer Lebanese bloggers feel the need to comment on Lebanese sectarian politics, and not only because some are fearful of the repercussions of expressing partisan views, but also from deep apathy.

Evidence of apathy

Liliane, blogger at From Beirut With Funk, highlights her blogging history as an example of growing apathy:

I agree that we are much more away from politics, but not about the reason. Personally, I stopped writing politics because I supported X during a period, then Y during another period, and then none. Reached a point where I felt watching/discussing politics did not help in anything and that’s that. This is when I decided to change my blog’s name. For me I care no more about these things, because it only seems they keep repeating the same mistakes, and nothing is changing in this country when it comes to trying to change things using politics. For me, change will come in a different matter, and it’s by education, and that is something I prefer to find methods to implement and encourage others to join.

Some responses on Twitter to the conversation appear to share the same view:

@LebanonLucy: @antissa @Beirutspring apathy is something the young, en masse, do now but also there is a lack of political education.

@frencheagle: @antissa I guess we are tired of politics, a matter also of stating that we can't change and that we were betrayed during the past 6 years

Role of social media

Social media may have constrained political debate in some corners, but overall it has expanded discourse and given new meaning to what is considered political in Lebanon.

Political debate is no longer confined to the daily ritual of politicians insulting each other for a greater slice of the pie, whilst the country wallows in corruption, high unemployment, and a lack of basic services.

Indeed, Lebanese citizen journalists have broken the limits of political discourse originally defined by politically engineered mass media and the country's sectarian system.

Lebanese bloggers may not be responding to Hariri's rally as they have moved beyond the sectarian nature of Lebanese political life, and have grown increasingly cynical of local leaders who evoke the universal slogans of freedom, reform and democracy.

Liliane's and @frencheagle's responses reflect the widespread disappointment in the failure of the 2005 “Cedar Revolution” to engender real change, and have thus lost faith in the political system altogether.

A positive development out of the failed Cedar Revolution has been the emergence of online activism in tackling the issues Lebanon's sectarian elites refuse to entertain. There are blogs now on a plethora of issues ranging from migrant workers, gay rights, and women's rights, to local governance and poor basic services.

Social media has also been instrumental in organising and promoting important political campaigns, such as the recent rally for secular reform in the state - a platform no political party has taken seriously. Civil society and social media again recently joined forces to raise awareness of Beirut's vanishing architecture at the hands of corruption.

These are but many examples of political activity in the Lebanese online community. To not recognise such discourse as political is to fall victim to the confining, reductionist sectarian definition of Lebanese politics.

Fadi from Life with Subtitles offers a similar viewpoint:

Don’t be sensitive over the use of “snub”.

Let’s say instead: Bloggers chose not to cover the rally.

The fact is, what got the most coverage from the rally on Lebanese blogs was the stripping scene, and the huge picture of the Saudi king (both with very little commentary).

Go back a few weeks and look at the secular marches. Those got a heck load of coverage, even though part of the message was political and accused the ruling political class of being rotten.

Here’s what I think happened: Bloggers aren’t writing their thoughts on the march 14 rallies (and other M8 or M14 activity) because, just like the majority of the population, they’re sick of old fashioned Lebanese politics. Give them something fresh, and they will (as they did) write about it. Case in point: the “From Beirut with Funk” blog.

Riham of Thread of Desire also sees social media as having surpassed the old-fashioned political bickering:

Well, this disgusts me for more than one reason, but I will only mention the most important one. Before I left Lebanon, I had reached a stage of my Lebanese existence where politics became very clear to me. I realized that politics was the reason I was so stressed, pissed off and cynical. I saw that politicians kept arguing with each other, agreeing and disagreeing, changing sides and giving speeches full of hate and most importantly bullshit. & when things got bad, the only people who were being negatively affected were us.

It was us who were stuck at home when they take the streets. It was our young men and women who were taking the streets and killing each other while our beloved leaders were sitting in their well lit homes –while we drown in our 3 hour long daily darkness– enjoying the view and occasionally making speeches asking us to stop it. No matter how much they fight, we are the ones who were getting screwed. So I stopped listening. I stopped going to demonstrations, watching the news or discussing politics with anyone, regardless of whether or not they were on “my side”

The optimistic part of me likes to believe that people from my generation, those who are well educated, those who are part of the social media community and are exposed to the same information that I am exposed to, are the same way. So whenever I hear someone mindlessly repeating the same bullshit we hear on tv, the same bullshit being fed to us by our “leaders”, all I want to do is puke.

Nevertheless, Sunday's Hariri rally failed to generate a significant response from neither the resident political analysts nor the generalist bloggers. That even the majority of Lebanese political bloggers felt no need to comment on it suggests a failure by Hariri to attract interest.

Or perhaps it is indeed an indication that the Lebanese blogosphere has fallen deaf to old-fashioned Lebanese political rhetoric, and is in the process of defining a new political landscape that transcends sectarianism and nepotism.

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Hezballah - Lebanon's largest political party and only faction to have retained its weapons - ousted Hariri and his pro-Western March 14 coalition from government in January following the defection of Druze leader Walid Jumblatt to the Hezballah camp.

Despite attracting thousands of supporters to the rally, Hariri failed to make an impact online as the Lebanese blogosphere largely snubbed his demonstration.

Scattered coverage of the Hariri rally can be found amongst Lebanese blogs, which is a significant contrast from the major role social media has played in the Arab uprisings in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and Bahrain.

In a time of increasing debate on the role of social media in popular unrest, one must wonder whether a revolution is possible without the assistance of social media. Such an argument appears to have merit in Lebanon at least.

Indeed, Lebanon's circumstances are unique in the Arab world, where the majority of the region continues to live under the iron fist of an autocratic ruler. Lebanon, conversely, is a quasi-democracy constrained by the sectarian nature of its political system that pits the country's confessions against each other in a struggle for power.

The Lebanese blogosphere has, however, largely moved beyond the sectarianism that defines Lebanon's politics, and thus offer an alternative voice on Lebanese affairs and life that is not subject to a factional allegiance. That the blogosphere has snubbed the Hariri rally is an important indication of the failure of Hariri to woo neutral Lebanese to his cause.

Nevertheless, one prominent Lebanese blogger - Beirut Spring - offered his views on the Sunday protest:

Right before Mr. Hariri spoke, a large poster of King Abduallah of Saudi Arabia was erected on one of the walls of Virgin and became a backdrop for Mr. Hariri’s speech.

I was very dismayed when I saw it, as it contradicts much of what March 14 stands for. To mention only two things: The rejection of foreign intervention in Lebanon and the embracing of liberal values like freedom, democracy and multiculturalism (all of which are absent in Saudi Arabia).

It’s telling that the king’s poster was erected right before Mr. Hariri’s speech. This means that those handling the logistics know that such a backdrop would have been political suicide for Christian speakers like Mr. Samir Geagea and Amin el Gemayel.

But why even erect that poster in the first place? The best answer I could think of is this: This is a loud  message to Mr. Najib Mikati and to the rest of the world that whatever Mr. Hariri is about to say is approved by the Saudi King. In other words, Mr. Mikati has received “official” Sunni ostracism.

A mocking video of Hariri removing his jacket was circulated on YouTube:

A supporter, Elie Fares, gave his reasons for attending the rally on his blog A Separate State of Mind:

1. I’m participating to let the old senile man, accusing me of not existing anymore, know that I am here to stay.

2. I’m participating to let the whole world know that I am not to be taken for granted.

3. I’m participating because I need to bring my country back to where I chose it to go in 2009.

4. I’m participating because people seem to have forgotten how horrible it was when Syrians had control on the country.

5. I’m participating because my view of the best Lebanon does not include armed militias that can do whatever they want, whenever they want and expect you not to do anything about it.

6. I’m participating because I do not approve of political hypocrisy – one that has become all too common today.

7. I’m participating because I refuse the notion that having an opinion in Lebanon makes you part of the “herd.”

8. I’m participating because I don’t want my future to be one involving being stranded on doors of embassies and getting a colonoscopy in airports where my country is blacklisted.

9. I’m participating because while we were the “angels” in this country, it’s high time we be its devils (in a peaceful and organized way, of course)

10. I’m participating because our martyrs, who died to keep this country free and sovereign, should not be forgotten.

11. I’m participating because in a world that is bleak, the concept of justice is one that will keep a light on.

12. I’m participating because I believe it’s high time we take a stand with what we believe in.

13. I’m participating because I want to.

Although Hariri may own a large number of Lebanese mainstream media outlets, he appears to have little sway over a major independent voice in the country: social media.

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Human rights groups have put the latest death toll in the Libyan crisis to over 6000, as pro-Gaddafi forces continue to pound opposition-held cities with air strikes.

Much of the fighting appears to be in the city of Brega, although reports indicate that anti-Gaddafi revolutionaries have successfully repelled the offensive and are pushing towards the capital, Tripoli.

Men at the refugee camp "Shusha" on the Libyan-Tunisian border. Image by Amine LANDOULSI, copyright Demotix (03/03/2011).

Evidence that Gaddafi is perpetrating gross atrocities is mounting, with images and news of human rights violations continuing to seep through social media. This, for example, is an extremely graphic image of protesters shot dead by anti-aircraft weaponry currently being circulated on social media.

Thousands of refugees continue to pour over the border into Tunisia, where temporary camps have been set up by the United Nations Refugee Agency UNHCR to shelter fleeing foreigners, mostly Egyptians.

Below is raw footage of fighting taking place on the outskirts of Brega. Pro-Gaddafi fighter jets can also be heard hovering above the city.

Bloggers in Libya continue to post updates, amidst growing fears for their safety.

From Tripoli, From the Rock urges the West to lift sanctions that are cutting off urgently needed funds for ordinary Libyans to live:

If you thought that the past two weeks were painful, the future does not look less tragic, because with this mass freezing of  Libyan assets, I'm afraid that the Central Bank will not be able to cover any withdrawing of funds from Libyan citizens, which would result in an economic crisis in the power of purchase. Salaries may not be accessible if there is no liquidity and that would create mass fear.

If there is anyone listening please unfreeze those assets!

Khadija Teri describes life in Tripoli as pro-Gaddafi forces prepare for the looming battle:

We drove around the city to see what was happening. Women holding shopping bags hurried about with worried looks on their faces. Men wearing green scarves around their necks were busy putting up green flags. Pick-up trucks with oil-company stickers slapped on the sides but without licence plates were parked at roundabouts, doors and windows open to reveal uniformed men with machine guns inside. A huge crowd of people were at the port waiting to board a ship that would evacuate them to safety. Anti-aircraft guns were  placed at various places along the coast road. The weather was beautiful but no one was enjoying the day. The whole atmosphere was weird, it felt as if you were being watched or followed. It felt as though any second something horrible could happen - it felt unsafe.

I'm getting tired of staying at home. The kids want to go back to school again. Today I said to a friend: ‘I want things to be normal again.' and she laughed and replied ‘Things have never been normal in Libya!'

My Enchanting Sereeb writes with a sense of urgency as Gaddafi continues to perpetrate atrocities:

The cities of Misrata and Az-Zawia still under siege and medical supplies are running low; yesterday Gaddafi’s mercenaries dropped bombs on Al-Brega, one of the biggest oil fields in Libya.

I just spoke to my brother in Benghazi and he told me: “there is no going back; all we want is for gaddafi and his sons to leave Libya and stop this bloodshed. No negations, no reconciliation with this criminal regime. We are not purporting violence but we are all willing to die for our freedom. We had enough of this cruel regime; it terrorized us over 42 years, enough is enough. We want to live in peace and build our country. There is no civil war in Libya and there won’t be one; the war is between the Libyan people and gaddafi and his mercenaries. We either live with dignity or die. THERE IS NO GOING BACK.

My life is at a standstill at the moment; I’m sick, I’m traumatized but I’m sure of one thing: I am too willing to die for our freedom.

One crazy person is going to set a whole country ablaze and kill as many people as he can and the world is watching, analysing, worrying about gas prices and the Oscars! No wonder I’ve been sick for days. I need to join my family in Libya.

Libyan tweeps are also keeping the world informed as the violence unfolds:

@FreeLibyan87 #Libyans remember the blood of your martyrs we have to finish what they started. It is our duty now to fulfil their dream of a FREE #LIBYA

@ShababLibya The liberated parts of #Libya namely Benghazi are cleaner then they have ever been in 42 years as the youth are taking care of everything

@Libya_United Air-crafts on sky of Tripoli Today! http://twitpic.com/45o5zs http://twitpic.com/45o6ho #Tripoli #Feb17

@ShababLibya BREAKING: What sounds like Bombs in Benghazi now, explosions taking place, not clear what is the source but can be heard very close #Libya

Meanwhile, talk of US military intervention in Libya has received little enthusiasm from neither Libyan nor American tweeps.

@Tripolitanian Come on #Libya! The US or UN or anyone else won't do it for you, YOU must bring success to this revolution! You can do it.

@Tripolitanian With the US involvement in current #Libyan affairs, I worry that #Libya will turn into the next #Iraq

@Tripolitanian The #Libyans would greatly favour an Arab League's imposition of a No-Fly Zone over #NATO's. #Libya

@libya_Horra Hates how western media has adopted calling us #rebels.. We revolutionaries, people that said enough.. We deserve to be FREE!! #libya #feb17

@TrablesVoice last plan for Gaddafi is to tell all Libyans the US are coming to invade Libya for OIL, he will do what ever it takes for them to come.

@Tripolitanian Looks like the Chinese have made themselves clear on #Libya situation, they want w/e is economically best for them, ie #Gaddafi

Western tweeps:

@jane4today We in America toss the words”hero” & “freedom” aound a lot. U all have shown us the real meanings #Libya #Tripoli #Feb17 God be with u all

@chlai88 #libya is more #iraq than bosnia. premature western military intervention becomes a western revolution rather libyan's own

@wwwwwhatt they (US) had the capabilities to end it (Gaddafi) yesterday, 10 years, 20 years ago, wouldn't agree then or now…to put it another way, i would not want a serial killer to rescue me from a crazed mugger

@nirrosen No fly zone over Libya is a great idea, but maybe put one over Afghanistan too so the US stops killing Afghan children?

@nist Gates is wrong: No-fly (if limited to East Libya) does not require strikes against air defenses in Tripoli. US should act now. #eastlibya

@robertastrupp Libya: Have to do what is BEST 4 US & Israel-It is a fool's errand to imagine the Muslims of Libya will even thank us. Remember Lockerbee !

Past experiences of Bosnia and Rwanda have come back to haunt the international community as it faces a major test in averting a humanitarian catastrophe in Libya.

Whilst many are indeed skeptical of American and British intervention in a strategic Arab state, given historic antagonism, the world must decide whether allowing thousands to perish is a necessary sacrifice to free Libya from a ruthless dictator.

This post is part of our special coverage Libya Uprising 2011.

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One month after a revolution began to demand political reform, Cairo's Tahrir Square was again the scene for bloody violence as the Egyptian army moved to quash continued protests for civilian rule.

Thousands of Egyptians demanded the departure of the government of prime minister Ahmed Shafiq. Tahrir Square, Cairo, Egypt. Image by Adham Khorshed, copyright Demotix (25/02/2011).

Two weeks since the ouster of dictator Hosni Mubarak, Egypt remains grappled in a tug of war between protestor demands for immediate democratic reform and a potent military refusing to cede power.

The use of force by the Army on thousands of peaceful protestors yesterday is a stark contrast from several weeks ago, when the Army appeared to be sympathetic towards public calls for Mubarak's resignation.

Citizen journalists from Cairo reported on Twitter that the army beat protestors with clubs and electric prods, and had sexually abused women.

Yesterday's violent confrontation suggests that patience on all sides is wearing thin, as protestors become increasingly frustrated at the military's reluctance to implement promised democratic reform.

It is also clear that, although Mubarak is no longer ruler, the army-backed political system that empowered his dictatorship for 30 years remains largely intact.

Egypt's revolution has entered a new phase as reform efforts are now aimed at reducing the military's role in political affairs. Protestors may be in for a long fight as the violent suppression of protests yesterday reveal an Army determined to hold onto its influence in the volatile country.

monaeltahawy #Egyptian army and military police beat and arrested peaceful pro-freedom demonstrators in #Cairo today. The revolution continues. #Jan25

monasosh The army were extremely hostile,constantly threatening us wt detention but they refrained coz we had an old woman wt us AKA My mother #Jan25

monasosh One of the detainees who was just released say they r detaining alot of ppl. All are beaten up badly #Jan25

Rouelshimi New post: Egyptian army shows its true colours - http://bit.ly/hHUHUM - #Jan25 #Tahrir #Egypt

ElFoulio They charged abt 30 seconds after the military commander asked ppl very politely to leave, not much for small talk #jan25

ElFoulio The electric prods were carried by military police, army soldiers were mainly kicking and hitting whoever they caught #jan25

monasosh Via @Maswad tasered some1 as he was running,fell shaking on ground then went motionless,heard them say get him,dont know where he is #Jan25

alaa Worrying to see how undisciplined army soldiers where, acting violently without any plan screaming obscenities at women, etc #Jan25

alaa Military police used electric prods, thistime regular infantry joined in the beating, many injuries #Jan25

alaa In tahrir they used special forces soldiers wearing balaklavas and carrying assault weapons #Jan25

alaa Among the arrested: shadi el ghazaly harb a youth leader who was involved in talks with the army, and taqadom el khatib a univ prof #Jan25

alaa The army showed its true face tonight using extreme violence to disperse the two sitins and arresting many #Jan25

Gsquare86 first they cordoned us, then they stopped, then they told us to leave, then they beat us up & arrested many, we don't know to where or who

JanoCharbel Army forcefully dispersed protest outside parliament. Soldiers punched, kicked & slapped me. Then clubbed me w/ an electric prod in my face.

Gsquare86 Revolution phase 3 begun tonight, I heard the taser guns, witnessed the beatings and arrests carried BY THE ARMY.

Gsquare86 The army had to choose at some point whether to choose the people or the old regime, and tonight they clearly chose the old regime !

This post is part of our special coverage of Egypt Protests 2011.

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News is emerging on Twitter that Libyan leader Mu'ammar Gaddafi has sent in the army against protestors, with deaths reported in Benghazi and other parts of the country. Gaddafi is one of the longest serving dictators in the world, now entering his 42nd year as President.

Gaddafi at the 12th African Union summit. Image by US Government, in the public domain.

Libyans have been inspired by pro-democracy demonstrations in neighbouring Tunisia and Egypt that have toppled their respective rulers.

But their protests appear to have been met with stiff resistance, as Gaddafi shows no hesitation in deploying violence to suppress anti-regime protests.

This post is part of Global Voices special coverage on Libya Uprising 2011.

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The Lebanese blogosphere has been vociferous in its support for the Egyptian protests that have so far left up to 150 people dead.

Egypt has been rocked by mass demonstrations aimed at forcing their totalitarian leader, Hosni Mubarak, from power after 30 years in office.

Lebanese bloggers have been anything but idle as the Arab world witnesses a momentous event that could change the region forever.

As soon as demonstrations began on January 25th, Lebanese bloggers Mireille Raad (Twitter: @migheille) and Layal (Twitter: @nightS) - also a Global Voices contributor - established an image feed for protestors to easily upload and circulate their photos online.

Blogging Beirut has equally been instrumental in providing online assistance to Egyptian protestors. The authors at Blogging Beirut have set up a Missing Person's List via Google Docs for Egyptians to add and circulate information of missing loved ones caught up in the protests.

Tweets have also revealed Lebanese in Egypt protesting alongside Egyptians for an end to Mubarak's rule.

Lebanese @BloggerSeif has been in Cairo participating in protests, and tweeting frequently as events unfold:

Rami Zurayk has been particularly vocal on his blog Land and People in support of the uprising. In one post, Zurayk points to the fear in the US and Israel of a collapsing regional order:

I think the US and Israel are more concerned about the revolution in Egypt than Mubarak himself. They see the end of the US and Israeli order imposed through tyrants and dictators. And they are right: Obama will witness the end of the US influence in the Middle East and this is going to be added to his long list of failures.

US arrogance is clearer than ever these days. They do not care to hide it any more. They want to dictate to the Egyptian people how they should lead their revolution. And they are now making positive signs about the “wish of the people” and the “rights of the people” as if they really cared about the people when they supported dictatorships and fed them and helped them oppress that same “people” for over 30 years.

Frenchy on Le Liban potentially sees the renewal of Egypt as a major Arab regional power with the fall of Mubarak:

Moubarak n’est également pas un Gamal Abdel Nasser. Les pays arabes – et plus particulièrement les monarchies du Golfe et d’Arabie – ont tremblé à l’aube de la révolution nassérienne, face au risque de voir l’Égypte devenir le pays le plus puissant de la région, s’appuyant sur une politique Panarabe, pour l’unité des pays arabes. Si le pouvoir égyptien saute, qu’un successeur reprenne le flambeau d’un pays destiné en fin de compte, par son importance géopolitique et démographique à être un pays majeur de la région.

English:

Mubarak is equally no Gamal Abdel Nasser. The Arab states - and in particular the monarchies of the Gulf and Arabia - that trembled at the dawn of the Nasserite Revolution, risk seeing Egypt becoming the most powerful state in the region, following pan-Arab policies, for the unity of Arab states. If Egyptian power leaps, that a successor retakes the torch of a country destined, by its geopolitical and demographic importance, to be a major country in the region.

Green Resistance points to wonders of people power in changing the paradigm in the region:

Just a few weeks ago, I heard the same comments I’d be hearing for years: we the Arabs need a dictatorship. We the Arabs need a military coup d’etat. The “people” are dumb. The “people” are sheep. Ironically, the folks making these comments were never part of the “people” they were condemning.

Now, in Tunis, and in Egypt – the people are rising. The people are leading. The people are organizing. The people are protecting themselves. The people are building something beautiful.

Stop for a second. Relish in this concept.

People believed – and believe – they can make a change. Hope is a powerful element. A very powerful element.

These people are us. Here.

Strong words of support from Rita Chemaly:

People of Egypt, dear Courageous demonstrators, you are voicing out our frustration, you are leading the way as your fellow Tunisian did, for people to make the choices and the reforms they wish.

No more double standards by big powers in looking at the situation!

The people are saying what they want, can’t You hear them?

Stop being afraid for your interests in the region,

The words chanted by the People in the streets, and retransmitted throughout social media, and mass media are simple:

“The people want the regime to fall!”

Dear Egyptian friends Long Live your ACTION!

Noting the consequences of an Egyptian Revolution for Israel, BeirutSpring wonders which way the Americans will swing:

You can’t overestimate how much Israel is worried right now. The question is whether or not the Americans will bend over backwards to accommodate those Israeli fears.

As is the case across the Arab world, the Lebanese are expressing unanimous support for the Egyptian demonstrations.

This post is part of our special coverage of Egypt Protests 2011.

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The worst of the scenes were in the predominantly Sunni city of Tripoli, where protestors burnt tyres, vehicles, offices, and attacked the media.

Hariri supporters burn posters of Druze leader Walid Jumblatt - via Mohammad Elrifai, Twitter: @moe_elrifai

If the protests were designed to generate support for Hariri's case, they appear to have failed at least on the blogosphere. Bloggers of all political persuasions expressed dismay at the violent behaviour and openly sectarian nature of the protests.

Rita Chemaly responded angrily to the protests:

I felt frustrated, ashamed and furious yesterday when I saw what happened during the riots, the riots for expressing the “rage” of some Lebanese! During the ” day of rage” as it was called by some people.

Destroying the live press car of Al-Jazeera?!

New TV,  girl being beaten and intimidated?!

By whom? The political party or force that usually claims the state of Law? The so called “ democracy”?

The state of law I live for, advocate for, and hope for? A state where the balance of things is equal to all?

The army not doing anything to stop the masses from burning a building where the press was trying to hide in?

A press-car, Burned and Destroyed?

Lebanon was always known for its Freedom of EXPRESSION and thought!!!

Sectarian banners again? Friends tell me, that this is Not true!!! Shiia/ Sunni? No way…I totally refuse such an equation!

Rami Zurayk at Land and People condemns Hariri's Future Movement for stirring sectarian strife:

Elsewhere in the Arab World, they demonstrate for freedom and in Lebanon they demonstrate for the sectarian leader.

Yesterday's events exposed the ugly face of the Future Movement and on the March 14 coalition: a small group of western-dressed neo-cons suavely wielding the most despicable sectarian discourse in order to control masses of poor people they themselves contribute to keeping in poverty, and whom they only remember when they need to pit them against another sect. For these people, humans are just numbers, both economically and politically.

Ghassan Karam at Ramblings calls for the sacking of Lebanon's entire political class:

Lebanon cannot be saved by those that have created the problem. All of the current crop of politicians needs to be fired. Are we up to the task? Don't hold your breath.

The AngryArab notes the double standard approach to Western media reporting of Hariri's ‘day of rage', and Hezballah's brief display of manpower on the streets of Beirut last week:

Last week, Hizbullah men gathered peacefully while wearing black t-shirts in various parts of Lebanon.  They did not speak and stayed for an hour. The Western and Hariri press treated that as an assault on the city and its civility.  Watch and see how the Western press will treat the thuggish and Salafaite protests of today in Lebanon.

He continues by arguing that Hariri's overtly sectarian protests may have backfired by alienating any Christian support that remains for him, and ultimately pushing the Christians further into the Hezballah camp:

… mini-Hariri, instead of falsely posing as a statesperson, decided to play it thuggishly and it seems to have backfired.  They are clearly embarrassed as evidenced by the speech of mini-Hariri and they have scared off the Christian allies of Hariri Inc.  Gen. `Awn (the Christian ally of Hizbullah) was beaming today and this is why.  Christians still remember when the Hariri Inc sponsored a Salafi demonstration 4 years ago (?) against the Danish embassy in Beirut over the Danish cartoons and it went out of hand and the Salafite Harirites went wild attacking churches and residential buildings.

Whilst Mustapha at Beirut Spring chastises Hezballah and his Christian allies as hypocrites for undertaking the same violent approach in the past, he equally criticises Tuesday's protests for harming the brand of the Hariri-led March 14 coalition:

In reaction to that, Hezbollah and Aounist apologists did what they did best. They rose on a pedestal, wagged their fingers and started lecturing us about Sunnis being sectarian and thugs.

Oh please shut up. How can you blame them for being angry and behaving like that? If there is one lesson our country learned from Hezbollah, it’s that violence works.

Hezbollah used violence to secure the Doha veto by virtually blocking an entire city for almost two years. They cowed Walid Jumblat by physically assaulting his people, and they scarred the Beiruties by sending their armed thugs into peaceful neighborhoods and imposed their wills.

If there’s anything those demonstrations are saying, it’s this: This is not a level playing field. The people with the guns are the ones who are winning every time. Maybe we should play their game for once.

Mr. Hariri should be very careful about controlling his die-hard supporters. I’m talking about the kind that is in it for Sunni domination and whose idea of protest is to curse the vaginas of the sisters and mothers of opposing politicians.

Although they provide feet on the ground, they are a threat to the March 14 brand and they risk alienating people like Dana who will probably stay home during the next demonstration.

MarillionLB at For a Better Lebanon also shares empathy with the anger felt by protestors, but deplores violence as a means to express it:

I can understand the anger and the frustration, but I cannot accept the similarities (save the detail of armed thugs) with what I condemned vehemently in 2008; the similarities were there for me to condemn. Yes “sticks and stones will not break my bones” as the saying goes, but this does not in any way justify stooping to their level and falling into their well laid trap. All that was missing was the herd of mopeds, AK47’s, RPG’s, and militia uniforms. This does not make the impact any less gruesome and worrying.

Graffiti art in Beirut turns political - by Matthew Cassel on Yfrog (via Beirutspring.com)

Sean at The Human Province gives a much deeper analysis by emphasising Lebanon's structural flaws as at the core of its continued instability:

So this leads back to the initial question of what the problem is. One could point to the STL, but really, that’s just the catalyst. It could just as easily be another issue, as it has been in the past, and it will be something else later down the road. The problem here is structural. In order to accommodate the National Pact and the Ta’if agreement,  this paralyzing “consensus” has become an unwritten rule.

Personally, I think the idea of “no victor, no vanquished,” which has been used to justify paralyzed governments of “national unity,” is stupid — at least when it comes to coalition politics. I think the best thing for Lebanon would be to have a proper government and proper opposition, meaning when one side loses, they bow out of government leaving their opponents to govern and trying to do better in the next elections.

Political analyst Elias Muhanna at Qifa Nabki echoes similar sentiments by adding his support for a majoritarian democracy, and an end to the notion that a consensus must be reached within each sect to form government.

While I sympathize with those who chafe at the hypocrisy of March 8th’s newfound majoritarian impulses, I strongly support the democratic principle that legitimizes Hizbullah’s current move. The March 8th coalition is now Lebanon’s parliamentary majority. They should have the right to bring down this government and form their own. Governments fall all the time, all around the world. This should be able to happen in Lebanon without sparking sectarian protests.

On a slightly more abstract note, I found myself wondering today (as I did back during the 2006-08 constitutional crisis), what effect the majority coalition’s pro-democracy rhetoric would have on Lebanon’s political culture in the long term. The fact that we’ve seen both sides of the political divide appealing to a majoritarian logic within the space of six years seems significant to me. No?

Obviously, what I would like to see happen is for this new method of choosing prime ministers (and speakers) to be enshrined in the Constitution, such that we don’t keep flip-flopping between consensual and majoritarian procedures every other year. A precedent has been set. Let’s stick with it. But you can bet that won’t happen.

American blogger on Middle Eastern politics, Andrew Exum, warns on his blog Abu Muqawama of the danger posed by Israel now that Hezballah has taken the lead role in government:

I want, though, to focus on how this plays into the way another war between Hizballah and Israel might look. Israel, since the conclusion of the Lebanese Civil War, has always held the government of Lebanon responsible for the actions of Hizballah. In the 1993's ‘Operation Accountability,” for example, Israel said it was bombing southern Lebanon in part to coerce the governments of Syria and Lebanon to rein in Hizballah. (Why the Israelis thought Hafez al-Asad cared about people dying in southern Lebanon, Dear Reader, is as much a mystery to me as it is to you.) In 1996's “Operation Grapes of Wrath,” meanwhile, Israel actually gave us a foretaste of the 2006 war by targeting Beirut and Lebanese infrastructure (such as power stations), again in an effort to get the government of Lebanon to crack down on Hizballah.

But Israel's habit of hitting Beirut gets a little less crazy each year. In 1993 and 1996, it made no sense to target the government of Lebanon. By 2006, though, Hizballah was in the government of Lebanon — or was at least holding seats in parliament. And now, Hizballah has formed its first government in Lebanon, which — and Paul Salem is right here — probably makes the organization a little nervous. There are huge risks associated with this. In another war, for example, Israel will be able to claim — for the first time, really — that Hizballah is Lebanon, and Lebanon is Hizballah. Since Hizballah controls the government, any attack on the institutions of the state — to include the US-equipped Lebanese Armed Forces — will be legitimate. And even people like me, who genuinely love Lebanon and its people and do not like to see either bombed, will not have much of an argument for why Israel should not.

Calm has since been restored to Lebanon following a day of ugly scenes, but the country holds its breath as to what lies ahead.

Written by Antoun Issa · comments (0)
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