UPDATE: Scroll to the end for all latest updates on the protests!
Hizb’allah is showing up less and less in the wire — which may or may not be good. But right now, the focus is on the opposition and what moves they will make in face of the pro-Syria protest last week that brought Kharami back to the premiership. Yesterday, protestors got a little creative, by coordinating with each other to make a giant flag using colored boards.
Various opposition groups as well as Hariri’s Tayyar Al Mustaqbal (Future Tide) Movement have been blaring radio appeals for a massive turnout at Monday’s protest under the slogan of ‘allegiance to Lebanon’ and ‘loyalty to Hariri.’In a warms up for the protest , some 11,2000 opposition activists carried colored paper boards across the street from Hariri’s graveside to cover the entire Martyrs Square with a makeshift huge red, white and green flag, Lebanon’s national colors. They chanted “freedom, truth, national unity.”(Naharnet-AP)
And in addition to this, according to Lebanonwire.com has a little more information on how this protest worked.
Their 3,800-square-meter flag was formed by cardboard pieces that on one side were in the Lebanese colors — red, white and green — and black on the reverse side.
When a speaker addressing the crowd made reference, for example, to Lebanese MPs said to be in the pay of foreign powers, pieces were flipped and the flag turned black.
The flag returned to its normal colors on a call for light to be shed on Hariri’s killing, which many Lebanese suspect was the work of Syria. Syrian authorities, who have troops stationed in Lebanon, have strongly denied involvement.
I posted a more human interest story in my last roundup about how the tent city is uniting the protestors. Funny enough, the reporter interviewed the kids making the flag protest.
The Future Youth tent - representing the young people’s arm of Mr Hariri’s organisation - is a short distance from the rest. It has plastic windows, carpets and electric lights.
Here Najah and her friend Nada are working on a computer-designed demonstration in which exactly 10,800 people will stand in a rectangle holding cards above their heads to form a huge Lebanese flag. The event will be filmed from the air.
I can see the advertisement now — “3D Studio Max! The ULTIMATE in revolutionary software!” And it works so many ways. The Lebanese Code was there, ON THE SPOT, with pictures and details of how it was organized. More pictures here.
The protests carried into last night, with the entire camp holding a candlelight vigil.
Thousands of opposition activists from all political and sectarian shades of Lebanon’s spectrum spent the night at a make-shift metropolis of blue tents erected just across the street from Hariri’s grave at the courtyard of Al Amin Mosque and in cars and buses parked nearby.They maintained a nightlong candle light vigil at the grave and drew with burning candles the word ‘Truth’ in Arabic and English, which Hariri’s sister, Bahia, said it means “we want the full truth about who conspired, planned and executed the assassination.”
Roaring chants rang out from the crowds at midmorning, demanding that State Prosecutor Adnan Addoum and commanders of all six major security and intelligence departments of the country be sacked for allowing Hariri’s assassination to happen exactly one month ago.
“This is a demand we shall keep alive in non-strop graveside sits-in,” said Hariri’s parliament bloc member Walid Ido. “The secret services have become a death machine, a death mill toiling without letup.”
Ido spoke on Hariri’s Future-TV network screen a few hours after ex-Defense Minister Mohsen Dalloul directly accused the Lahoud regime of involvement in Hariri’s assassination, revealing that a police unit assigned to protect the ex-premier was withdrawn a few days before the crime.
“Hariri had worked out an agreement with President Lahoud to have the police unit assigned to protect and escort him as a former prime minister. The force was actually put on the job and it functioned from Hariri’s Koreitem mansion,” Dalloul said in an interview aired by the F-TV Sunday night.
“When Hariri’s aides managed to reach the official responsible for the protection unit, he said Hariri has plenty of money and he can hire his own security apparatus,” said Dalloul, a parliament member who served as defense minister in one of Hariri’s governments.
“The crime took place a few days later and now officials are boasting that ‘the crime is behind us,’ which means they have committed the crime,” Dalloul added.
And now for the big event. Just as the opposition spelled out “truth” with their candles, this is the moment of truth and hope for their cause. It’s big. It’s organized. It’s being written about.
BEIRUT - By car, bus and boat thousands of Lebanese poured into the capital Monday for a huge demonstration called by an emboldened opposition determined to end Syria’s near 30-year military presence in Lebanon.
Hours before the mid-afternoon start to the rally, more than 300,000 people, according to estimates by correspondents and photographers, were packed into Martyrs Square in central Beirut.
Many waved the red, white and green Lebanese flag on a splendid, sun-splashed Mediterranean morning near the grave of former prime minister Rafiq Hariri, assassinated in a bomb blast exactly one month ago and in whose memory the rally has been called.
Correspondents also reported a stream of buses and cars moving toward Beirut from the Bekaa valley in eastern Lebanon, while other participants were arriving by sea from Junieh, 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of Beirut.
Beirut was swarming with activity. Flag bedecked cars, horns squealing, were everywhere and hundreds of youthful organizers struggled to maintain an orderly flow of human traffic toward Martyrs Square.
Many banks and offices shut down at noon, giving their white collar employees the afternoon off to attend the demonstration. Schools and universities likewise ended classes at mid-day.
Walid Phares has an awesome report over at NRO. Read it all! UPDATE: And here is an interview with him on Fox News regarding the pro-Syria demonstrations.
Now, on to the Syria pullout. As of now, Syria is pulling back 4000 of its estimated 14,000 soldiers and 5000 of its intelligence officers back to the border.
WASHINGTON - Syria has promised to withdraw one-third of its 15,000 troops and 5,000 intelligence agents in Lebanon by the end of March, The Washington Post reported Sunday, citing US and UN sources.
President Bashar al-Assad also vowed to shut down Syria’s intelligence headquarters in Beirut by April 1, in talks Saturday in the Syrian city of Aleppo with UN envoy Terje Roed-Larsen, the daily said.
Roed-Larsen announced after the meeting that Assad had agreed to remove all Syrian military and intelligence personnel from Lebanon in two stages.”The first stage will see the relocation of all military forces and intelligence apparatus to the Bekaa valley by the end of March,” the UN envoy said.
“Further, a significant number of these Syrian forces, including intelligence (personnel), will be withdrawn from Lebanon into Syria during this stage.
“The second stage will lead to a complete and full withdrawal of all Syrian military personnel, assets and intelligence apparatus,” Roed-Larsen said in a statement read to AFP in Beirut.
Roed-Larsen did not immediately provide further details of the timetable, saying they would be presented to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in New York early next week.
And while no full timetable has been set, Syria’s Expatriates Minister has said they they should be out long before the May elections.
WASHINGTON - Syria’s troops will probably pull out of Lebanon before legislative elections scheduled for May, Syrian Expatriates Minister Bussaina Shaaban said Sunday.
“I think the troops will meet a very fast timetable,” Shaaban told CNN.
“The elections will take place and I think the troops will move out of Lebanon probably before then,” she added. “I don’t know how logistically possible it’s going to be, but probably before then.”
Syria’s ambassador to the United States, Imad Moustapha, on Tuesday said the troops would leave long before May.
I usually like to add in the pictures, as there was one of the minister in the story… but she wasn’t very pretty. I think it is safe to assume, however, that U.S. pressure will eventually get Syria out, and it probably won’t stop there. It is a big piece of U.S. foreign policy to isolate and crumble Syria’s regime. Assad is in a bad political position at this point, and should probably be more concerned about how to get out alive and live to be a bit older.
UPDATE: HUMAN TSUNAMI COVERS BEIRUT! According to Naharnet:
Human Tsunami Covers Beirut
Independent estimates placed the number of the opposition demonstration at well over 1.3 million, half an hour before the sit-in was scheduled to begin at mid-afternoon.
Highways into Beirut from northern, eastern and southern Lebanon were clogged by human waves stretching more than 5 kilometers from the capital trying to push their way to join the graveside protest.
Mustapha has a personal anecdote to share from family there right now. The Lebanon Daily Star is beginning to post photos from today, though the ones so far are from earlier. The official website of Rafic Hariri has live coverage. Follow the link and click “live coverage” to see the stream.
They’re talking about the whole thing at the Lebanese Forces Forums. Everyone is incredibly excited and hopeful for what is going on right now. This is huge!
Already labeled as the biggest demonstration in the history of Lebanon, This demonstration will leave its mark for decades if not centruies to come.
Cities and Villages are empty except for the sick really young or too old. A small example from 3ersal the estimated number is 25,000 total population is 32,000, Bsharri the same Zahle the same, all of Lebanon is at Martyrs square they will fill it and Solh square many time over.
People are running out of busses, demonstratore from Bar Elias claimed that busses have been paid 100$ to not carry demonsatrtors, thousands are on the street of Bekaa walking, and towards of Beirut.
I know it’s going to work out. We’re cheering for you guys!
MORE: A RELIABLE LIVESTREAM is available at the link. Streaming video and sound! I’m watching right now. This is incredible! Here’s a quote from “Zed” of the forums:
From Nayla speech:
“we are here 100% lebanese..
is there any one non-lebanese between us?…… people: NOO!
I say to Hizbullah that they do not exist to defend this regime..
I call upon them to complete the liberation of the south..
Hariri’s murder is not a “za3raneh”… it is an earthquake for lebanon and for the arab world.”
Assad must be shitting in his pants.
Martyr’s Square is completely full and protestors are being advised to start overflowing into other squares, which are being filled up as well. The projection of 1.3 million is coming true, as numbers have surged passed 700,000 as kilometers of vehicles are lined up outside Beirut!
BEIRUT - More than 800,000 people, according to a city official, poured into central Beirut Monday for an opposition demonstration demanding an end to nearly three decades of Syrian military domination.
The figure, provided by city official Mounib Nassereddine, did not include demonstrators who were still arriving from all parts of the country.
Here’s a picture from the above link.
UPDATE: I think there is no way that Lahoud will be able to stay in office now (From naharnet.com):
Independent estimates placed the number of the opposition demonstration at well over 1.6 million.
Highways into Beirut from northern, eastern and southern Lebanon were clogged by human waves stretching more than 5 kilometers from the capital trying to push their way to join the graveside protest.
Legislator Marwan Hamadeh formally opened the sit-in protest by declaring that the massive opposition was ‘writing the end of President Lahoud’s police state and its Syrian backers.’ He drew thunderous cheers when he announced ‘this is the end to the one whose regime has been extended and to those who extended his regime.’
