Free Republic

BEIRUT, 15 March 2005 — Over one million opposition backers chanted “Freedom, Sovereignty, Independence” and unfurled a huge Lebanese flag in central Beirut yesterday, throwing the biggest protest yet in the opposition’s duel of street rallies with supporters of Syria and the Lebanese government. Crowds of men, women and children flooded Martyrs’ Square, spilling over into nearby streets, while more from across the country packed roads into Beirut — responding to opposition calls to mark a month since the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. His slaying sparked a series of protests against Syria, the dominant power in Lebanon....

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators chanted "Freedom, sovereignty, independence," and waved a sea of Lebanese flags in Beirut on Monday, the biggest anti-Syrian protest yet in the opposition's duel of street rallies with supporters of the Damascus-backed government. Crowds of Druse, Christians and Sunni Muslims flooded Martyrs' Square and spilled over into nearby streets — responding to an opposition call to turn out for the removal of Syrian troops from Lebanon. "We are coming to liberate our country. We are coming to demand the truth," said Fatma Trad, a veiled Sunni Muslim woman who traveled from the...