Beirut protesters slam Syria

2005-02-21 15:16

Beirut - Chanting "Syria out," tens of thousands of Lebanese massed on the Beirut seafront on Monday as pressure mounted on the government and its backers in Damascus a week after the killing of ex-premier Rafiq Hariri.

The mass rally was called by Lebanon's opposition which has been galvanised by the murder into stepping up its campaign for an end to Syrian interference in the country's political affairs and a withdrawal of its 14 000 troops.

Waving the red and white scarves and banners of what the opposition is calling its "peaceful uprising for independence," demonstrators shouted "Syria out" and "Down with the government" as they marched on the site where Hariri was killed on February 14.

The opposition blames Damascus and the Syrian-backed government in Beirut for the massive bomb blast that ripped through Hariri's motorcade, killing a total of 17 people and sending shockwaves through the country.

Lebanon's government, facing mounting calls to resign over the murder, has vowed to cooperate with UN investigators to find Hariri's killers but rejected a full international inquiry.

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said in Brussels said there was a "high level of suspicion" that Syria was involved and urged an independent investigation.

In a bid to ease tensions, Arab League chief Amr Mussa held talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Foreign Minister Faruq al-Shara.

In Beirut, security was tight with anti-riot police and soldiers out in force, but there were no incidents reported and at 10:55 GMT the sea of demonstrators observed five minutes of silence to mark the exact moment of the bomb blast.

Opposition lawmakers scored a victory in parliament on Monday, winning an agreement for a debate on the situation which could see a vote of no-confidence in the government of Prime Minister Omar Karameh.

The assassination of Hariri has exacerbated domestic tensions over Syria's political and military sway in the country 15 years after the end of its devastating civil war, and added to international pressure on Damascus to pull out of its smaller neighbour.

Hariri, 60, a five-time prime minister and a billionaire tycoon credited with spearheading Lebanon's post-war rebuilding, had quit as premier in October in a row over Syrian interference and was replaced by the pro-Syria Karameh.

The Lebanese regime denies any role in the Hariri killing and Damascus has accused Israel, denouncing what it calls "campaigns of intimidation" against it by the United States and the Jewish state.

And a meeting of pro-Syrian Lebanese political leaders on Sunday had rejected calls for the government to quit and said the crisis should be resolved through dialogue.

Opposition MPs, who make up about a third of the 128-seat parliament, have rejected any talks before Hariri's killers are found.

- AFP