Lebanon Survives Vicious Attempt to Instigate War

 Lebanese students rally in front of the Ministry of Education during ongoing anti-government protests, in the capital Beirut. (AFP)
Lebanese students rally in front of the Ministry of Education during ongoing anti-government protests, in the capital Beirut. (AFP)
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Lebanon Survives Vicious Attempt to Instigate War

 Lebanese students rally in front of the Ministry of Education during ongoing anti-government protests, in the capital Beirut. (AFP)
Lebanese students rally in front of the Ministry of Education during ongoing anti-government protests, in the capital Beirut. (AFP)

Lebanon survived a coordinated and systematic attempt to create sectarian divisions and the atmosphere of civil war that the Lebanese uprising, which started on October 17, has succeeded to overcome.

The attempt began on Sunday night with a number of simultaneous and anonymous statements calling for a general strike and sit-in in the squares, and even declaring the “end of the peaceful revolution.”

As the parties behind these statements could not be revealed, many linked these calls to organized attempts to stifle the people’s uprising.

A number of demonstrators responded to the call and gathered at several points, including the Ring Bridge in Beirut, Jal el Dib and Zouk, northeast of the capital.

This was followed by an influx of hundreds of young men belonging to the Shiite duo – represented by Amal Movement and Hezbollah - to the streets around the Ring Bridge, wrecking cars and shops, and writing sectarian slogans on walls, which led to widespread public discontent.

Fate intervened that night in the form of a tragedy that killed a man and a woman in a traffic accident. The Shiite duo quickly rushed to exploit it, blaming the demonstrators for the incident and accusing them of throwing stones at the victims’ car, which later proved to be a lie.

The next day, the protesters’ tents in the city of Tyre were attacked and burned by members of the same political parties, while hundreds of their supporters roamed the streets of Beirut on motorcycles, which have become a hallmark of Amal and Hezbollah partisans.

Hundreds of motorcyclists also attempted to enter the southern suburb of Ain al-Rummaneh, where they clashed with residents. On Tuesday, the same groups attacked a peaceful gathering in the city of Baalbek in the Bekaa region.

These coordinated efforts can have two objectives. The first is to revive the sectarian divide that prevailed after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005 and to portend a return to civil war by attacking Christian neighborhoods. The second objective is to regain control of the Shiite street, which has started to revolt against its leaders due to the deterioration of the economic situation.

The coordinated moves also came in light of the escalating government crisis, after former Prime Minister Saad Hariri rejected the conditions set by the FPM and Hezbollah on forming a government of politicians with certain figures affiliated with the civil movement. Hariri then refrained from heading any future government.

Motorcycle convoys, sectarian chants and assault on protesters in Tyre and Baalbek sought to surround the uprising and announce its death.

However, the Shiite duo did not take into consideration the effect of the deepening economic and financial crisis on the determination of the protesters.

After warnings issued by a number of importers and traders, strikes began to reach key sectors, where workers are subject to salary cuts or the threat of dismissal under the pretext of lack of liquidity and stagnation of economic movement.

On the other hand, those who insist on keeping the current authority without radical reform do not envisage removing Lebanon from its economic predicament in a way that relieves tension among low-income groups.

By Wednesday evening, after a joint demonstration by mothers from the Shiyah and Ain al-Rummaneh areas, which witnessed some of the heaviest fighting during the civil war, it was possible to say that the recent attempt to abort the revolution had failed thanks to two factors: the pressing political and economic crisis on one hand, and the Lebanese people’s prevailing feeling of belonging to a nation and not to rival political sects.



Tom Barrack: There Is One Syria

Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack at the People's Palace in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack at the People's Palace in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
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Tom Barrack: There Is One Syria

Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack at the People's Palace in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack at the People's Palace in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack described on Saturday the lifting of US sanctions on Syria as a “strategic fresh start” for the war-ravaged nation and said that the US was not intending to pursue “nation-building or federalism.”

The Syrian state news agency, SANA, quoted Barrack as telling the Arab News website, that the Trump administration’s removal of sanctions on May 13 was aimed at offering the Syrian people “a new slice of hope” following over a decade of civil war.

He described the Middle East as a “difficult zip code at an amazingly historic time.”

“President (Trump)’s message is peace and prosperity,” Barrack said, adding that “sanctions gave the people hope. That’s really all that happened at that moment.”

He noted that the US policy shift is intended to give the emerging Syrian regime a chance to rebuild.

The envoy clarified that the original US involvement in Syria was driven by counter-ISIS operations, and not aimed at regime change or humanitarian intervention.

He reaffirmed Washington’s position against a federal model for Syria, saying the country must remain unified with a single army and government.

“There’s not going to be six countries. There’s going to be one Syria,” he said, ruling out the possibility of separate autonomous regions.

Barrack added: “The US is not dictating terms but would not support a separatist outcome: We’re not going to be there forever as the babysitter.”

Last Wednesday, the Syrian government welcomed any path with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that would enhance the unity and territorial integrity of the country, reiterating its unwavering commitment to the principle of “One Syria, One Army, One Government,” and its categorical rejection of any form of partition or federalism.

Barrack confirmed that the US is closely monitoring the announcement that the first group of PKK fighters had destroyed their weapons in northern Iraq.

“This could be the first step towards long-term resolution of the Kurdish issue in Türkiye,” he said, but cautioned that questions remain about the SDF’s ongoing ties to the PKK leadership. “They (the SDF) have to decide: Are they Syrians? Are they Kurds first? That’s their issue.”

The envoy stressed that the current US strategy offers a narrow but real chance at stability.