Word: beirutization
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Hundreds of Hizballah supporters cruised the streets of central Beirut last week, honking their car horns and waving the militant Shi'ite Muslim group's yellow flag. The demonstration had a festive air, but it may have signaled the start of [an error occurred while processing this directive] something ominous: massive street protests threatened by Hizballah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah to bring down Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's Western-backed government. The government is already in crisis. Six pro-Syrian ministers quit last week after Siniora refused Hizballah's demand for a new government alloting the group and its allies...
Fifteen years ago last week, Anglican envoy TERRY WAITE was released from captivity after being held for 1,763 days by the Islamic Jihad. An adviser to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Waite had been kidnapped in January 1987 when he went to Beirut to negotiate the release of Western hostages. Today Waite no longer works for the Anglican Church. In fact, he no longer even attends services. Fed up with attempts to modernize Anglican worship that he says have "left little time for contemplation and quietness," he began going to Quaker services last month. Waite now devotes his time...
...What we are witnessing now is the politics of brinksmanship," said Hilal Khashan, a professor of political science at the American University of Beirut. "Who will back off first? There is a crisis for Siniora and the majority. They cannot afford to give Hizballah and their allies a veto in the cabinet. Hizballah meanwhile is fighting for their necks. They are being chased by Security Council resolutions calling for their disarmament. They brought the political system to a standstill. Hizballah is suffering as well...
...Lebanon really knows how this game of chicken will play out. Beirut has been tense all week, with police units out in force around key government buildings, checking bags and scaring off what few tourists remain in the city. The concern is that Hizballah anti-government demonstrations will provoke pro-government counter demonstrations, risking confrontations between the two sides. In the meantime, the country's economy, already burdened by this summer's destruction, will continue to suffer. Post-war reconstruction remains in paralysis...
...winner of Lebanon's political confrontation may be determined not by street protests in Beirut but by political jockeying in Washington. With Democrats pushing the Bush Administration to engage with Syria and Iran over the turmoil in Iraq, Hizballah may gain from the newfound stature of its patrons, according to Khashan. Still, that effect remains to be seen. "This is the Middle East," said Khashan. "You always have new uncontrolled variables that transform the situation at the last minute." One thing is for certain: now more than ever, Lebanon doesn't have time on its side...