BICOM

Violence erupted yesterday at the funeral of General Wissam al-Hassan, who was killed in a Beirut car bomb on Friday, as tensions over the violence in neighbouring Syria threatened to spill over into Lebanon.

General al-Hassan was considered to be a fierce opponent of Syrian influence in Lebanon. Until 2005, Syria had stationed tens of thousands of troops in Lebanon and wielded huge influence in the country. Al-Hassan headed an investigation over the summer that led to the arrest of former Information Minister Michel Samaha, a Lebanese politician who was one of Syria’s most loyal allies in Lebanon.

Al-Hassan’s killing has been widely interpreted as the direct or indirect work of the Syrian regime of President Assad, which has been embroiled in a violent conflict with Syrian opposition forces for over eighteen months. The civil war in Syria had already set off violence in Lebanon and deepened tensions between supporters and opponents of President Assad’s regime. These are loosely divided between Sunni Lebanese, who broadly support the Syrian opposition, and Shia Lebanese – including Hezbollah – who have been a determined ally to Assad. Hezbollah has been responsible for numerous deadly rocket attacks against Israel over the years and has a huge military presence in southern Lebanon.

Following al-Hassan’s funeral yesterday, around one thousand protesters attempted to storm the Lebanese government headquarters, but were repelled by a barrage of gunfire and tear gas fired by Lebanese security authorities. The protesters consider Lebanon’s Shia-dominated government, which includes a large Hezbollah faction, to be too close to the Syrian regime and according to AP, the crowd chanted slogans against Assad and Hezbollah.  AP also noted violence yesterday in the north of the country as roads were blocked and a gun battle took place in the city of Tripoli.