One man's "protest"
Adnan Hajj would be proud!!
It looks like it's a busy morning in Lebanon right now. Very interesting, in fact. Hezbullah is beginning their "expansion" of their "open-ended protest," to couch the debate in the terms used by a wholly sympathetic press. Of course, true to their form, their "protest" seems to have entered the traditional "violence phase," but let's not let silly little things like that define them for who they are.
(To the press, "rioting Muslims" is not immediately synonymous with "violence" for some strange reason. That type of terminology only applies to certain politically-unfavoured groups, it seems.)
There's no doubt in my mind that this is a calculated riot intended to re-capture the Western press's attention, and it is orchestrated by a group of people whose singular goal is the total Islamification of Lebanon. Of course, much like our anti-war Western counterparts, there are a handful of useful idiots mixed in the bunch to give a veneer of validity, who will be sorely disappointed when Nasrallah turns the tables on them.
Most of the photos that have come across the wires so far are indistinguishable from your average Palestinian violence, so for the moment, I'll refrain from posting all of them. You'll find the most interesting ones from the bunch beyond the break, though!
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Ace gets Line of the Day for this one:
That's what Israel should have called its campaign against Lebanon -- the 2006 Cross-Border Combined-Arms "Peace Warrior" Protest.
Marketing.
Lebanese soldiers stop stone throwers at the start of a general strike called by the opposition in Kaslik, north of Beirut January 23, 2007. Thousands of Lebanese protesters blocked main roads in Beirut and around the country with rubble and burning tyres on Tuesday at the start of a general strike called by the opposition to try to topple the government. REUTERS/George Abdallah (LEBANON)
Lebanese Red Cross personnel carry a protester who was wounded by stone throwers during a general strike called by the opposition in Kaslik area, north of Beirut January 23, 2007. Thousands of Lebanese protesters blocked main roads in Beirut and around the country with rubble and burning tyres on Tuesday at the start of a general strike called by the opposition to try to topple the government. REUTERS/George Abdallah (LEBANON)
Lebanese soldiers and protesters take cover from stone throwers during a general strike called by the opposition in Kaslik area, north of Beirut January 23, 2007. Thousands of Lebanese protesters blocked main roads in Beirut and around the country with rubble and burning tyres on Tuesday at the start of a general strike called by the opposition to try to topple the government. REUTERS/George Abdallah (LEBANON)
Lebanese soldiers stop a stone thrower during a general strike called by the opposition in Kaslik area, north of Beirut January 23, 2007. Thousands of Lebanese protesters blocked main roads in Beirut and around the country with rubble and burning tyres on Tuesday at the start of a general strike called by the opposition to try to topple the government. REUTERS/George Abdallah (LEBANON)
Lebanese soldiers and armoured personnel carriers stand guard in front of protesters in Dora, east of Beirut January 23, 2007. Thousands of Lebanese protesters blocked main roads in Beirut and around the country with rubble and burning tyres on Tuesday at the start of a general strike called by the opposition to try to topple the government. REUTERS/Wadea Shling (LEBANON)
It should be noted that the photos that Adnan Hajj was busted for looked a lot less scary than this next one:
Black smoke of burning tires and debris raises over Beirut city, Lebanon, Tuesday Jan. 23, 2007. Thousands of opposition protesters blocked roads with burning tires, debris and blazing cars around the Lebanese capital of Beirut and outlying regions of Lebanon on Tuesday, stranding motorists and workers in a bid to enforce a general strike aimed at toppling Prime Minister Fuad Saniora's government. The strike was called by Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah and other opposition leaders. But Saniora and his pro-government supporters urged all Lebanese to ignore the call. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
[Ed.: Finally, a little bit of truth in advertising] A protester waves a Hezbollah flag in front of burning tires during a general strike called by the opposition in Sidon, south Lebanon January 23,2007. (Aziz Taher/Reuters)
[Ed.: When all rocks are outlawed, only outlaws will have rocks?] Lebanese soldiers stand on a road leading to south Lebanon in front of stones thrown by protesters during a strike called by the opposition in Khaldeh, south of Beirut January 23, 2007. Thousands of Lebanese protesters blocked main roads in Beirut and around the country with rubble and burning tyres on Tuesday at the start of a general strike called by the opposition to try to topple the government. REUTERS/Aziz Taher (LEBANON)
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