AP News, January 23rd, 2007
Opposition protesters blocked roads with car tires around the Lebanese capital of Beirut and other regions on Tuesday to enforce a general strike aimed at toppling the government. Scattered violence was reported.
At least three opposition supporters were shot and wounded in the port city of Byblos when gunmen opened fire, opposition legislator Abbas Hashem told Al Arabiya pa-Arab satellite television. In Batroun in the north, the oppositions said two of its supporters also were shot. The conditions of those injured wasn't known.
Opposition activists set out early to burn tires on major highways north and south of the city as well as a ring road around downtown Beirut, sending black clouds of smoke billowing into the air. Army troops and fire engines moved in to remove the obstacles.
The road to Beirut international airport was blocked, so was the highway linking Beirut with the mountains and the road to Damascus, the Syrian capital, the television station of the Shiite militant group Hezbollah reported.
Since Dec. 1, The pro-Syrian opposition, led by Hezbollah and its allies, have staged street protests and sit-ins, camping outside Prime Minister Fuad Saniora's office, in a bid to topple his government.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Monday reiterated the group's demand that its wants a veto-wielding share of the prime minister's Cabinet _ a request that Saniora has rejected.
At a news conference, Saniora repeated his offer to enlarge the Cabinet to include more of the Hezbollah alliance's representatives, but not enough to give them veto powers.
The turnout for Tuesday's strike is seen as a test of strength between the government and the opposition. Although both leaders sought to avoid violence, tension in the streets between their supporters is likely to be high.
The strike has deepened divisions among Lebanese. It was backed by Lebanon's main labor union, but banking associations and business leaders have urged employees to report to work.
The anti-Syrian parliamentary majority, made up of mostly Sunni Muslims, Druse and Christians, backs Saniora. The opposition is led by Hezbollah, and also includes some Druse and Christians.
Scores of opposition supporters took the streets and in some instances security forces stood watching by. On the coastal highway north of Beirut at the Christian town of Jal el-Dib, opposition activists mobbed a fire engine and forced it to retreat. On the mountain road at Antelias, a few motorists maneuvered their way around burning tires to pass through.
In the Beirut commercial district of Mar Elias _ a Muslim sector _ opposition activists blocked column of army armored carriers from deploying in the area with burning tires in the streets.
Television stations also reported blocked roads in eastern, northern and southern towns.
The planned strike comes two days before Saniora and his economic team seek financial aid for Lebanon at an international donors' conference in Paris on Thursday. The opposition has said the grants and loans _ which local analysts say could amount to $5 billion _ would only increase the national debt and further weaken the economy.
Nasrallah has said the donors' conference aims at shoring up the Saniora government. During a rally Monday evening, he urged Hezbollah supporters to avoid trouble, saying: "We do not want to fight anyone. We do not want any bloodshed."
