US: Hezbollah must be 'accountable' for Lebanon unrest

US: Hezbollah must be 'accountable' for Lebanon unrest

The United States blamed Hezbollah as well as its patrons Iran and Syria on Friday for deadly unrest that has pushed Lebanon to the edge of civil war, and warned they must be held "accountable."

"The United States is consulting with other governments in the region and with the UN Security Council about measures that must be taken to hold those responsible for the violence in Beirut accountable," the White House said.

A senior US official declined to list any specific steps, and emphasized that there would not be a "one-size-fits-all" approach to Tehran, Damascus, and the Shiite militant group that Washington brands a terrorist organization.

In Washington, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice strongly reaffirmed US support for pro-Western Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora and reached out to key world leaders for ways to buttress his government.

"We will stand by the Lebanese government and peaceful citizens of Lebanon through this crisis and provide the support they need to weather this storm," she said in a statement.

Rice discussed the crisis by telephone with her French and Saudi counterparts, Bernard Kouchner and Prince Saud al-Faisal, as well as UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, according to spokesman Sean McCormack.

She was also expected to reach out to Siniora.

As the White House declared itself "very troubled" by the unrest, Rice denounced the violence and singled out Syria and Iran for backing Hezbollah, which she accused of trying "to protect their state within a state."

"We condemn the use of violence by illegitimate armed groups and call upon all parties to respect the rule of law," she said.

"Backed by Syria and Iran, Hezbollah and its allies are killing and injuring fellow citizens, undermining the legitimate authority of the Lebanese government and the institutions of the Lebanese state," said Rice.

State Department officials, who declined to be named, said the United States would provide diplomatic and political support to Siniora, ruling out any military backing for the time being.

Hezbollah fighters Friday seized control of west Beirut after three days of deadly street battles with pro-government foes which have pushed Lebanon dangerously close to all-out civil war.

White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe urged Hezbollah to "stop their attempt to defy the lawful decisions" of the government, which recently opted to probe the group's private communications network -- triggering a violent response.

"We also urge Iran and Syria to stop their support of Hezbollah and its destabilizing effects on Lebanon," he told reporters.

President George W. Bush, on his Texas ranch for the wedding of one of his daughters, still hopes to meet with Siniora in Egypt next week -- but would understand if the prime minister cancelled his visit, said Johndroe.

"We certainly expect to see Prime Minister Siniora in Sharm el-Sheikh next week. The president would like to see him next Saturday or Sunday. But if he feels the situation on the ground doesn't permit him to do that, we understand that as well," said the spokesman.

As Saudi Arabia called for an urgent meeting of Arab foreign ministers to defuse the crisis, Johndroe urged "the countries in the region to support the democratically elected government of Lebanon."

And McCormack charged that there was evidence of Syria-linked individuals and groups "fanning the flames of violence" in Lebanon.

As the fighting eased, Lebanese army and police moved across areas now in the hands of Iranian- and Syrian-backed opposition forces which have been locked in an 18-month power struggle with the ruling coalition.

"After months of paralyzing the democratically elected Lebanese government, Hezbollah has now turned its arms against the Lebanese people and challenged Lebanon's security forces for control of the streets," said Johndroe.

A senior State Department official who asked not to be named suspected Hezbollah's gambit was to stage a "show of force" that would draw compromises from the pro-Western majority.

"We don't know for sure what is going to happen in Lebanon," the official said. "But the idea of a Hezbollah coup d'etat that is sustainable in Lebanon does not strike me as very realistic, just given the demographics."

But as foreigners scrambled to leave it was unclear what the immediate future would hold, amid fears the protracted political feud could plunge Lebanon back into the dark days of the 1975-1990 civil war.

Hezbollah seizes much of Beirut

Hezbollah seizes much of Beirut

Associated Press

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) — Hezbollah gunmen seized control of several Beirut neighborhoods from Sunni foes loyal to the U.S.-backed government on Friday as sectarian clashes reminiscent of Lebanon's bloody 15-year civil war raged in the capital.

At least 11 people have been killed and more than 20 wounded in three days of street battles and gunfights, security officials said.

About 100 Shiite Hezbollah militants wearing camouflage uniforms and carrying assault rifles marched down Hamra Street, a normally vibrant commercial strip in a mainly Sunni area of Beirut. They took up positions in corners and sidewalks and stopped the few cars braving the empty streets to search their trunks.

On nearby streets, dozens of fighters from another Hezbollah-allied party appeared, some wearing masks and carrying rocket-propelled grenade launchers.

In another sign that the Hezbollah-led opposition was gaining steam, the satellite TV station affiliated with the party of Lebanon's top Sunni lawmaker, Saad Hariri, was forced off the air Friday. Gunmen also set the offices of the party's newspaper, Al-Mustaqbal, on fire in the coastal neighborhood of Ramlet el-Bayda.

Lebanon's army, which has stayed out of the sectarian political squabbling that has paralyzed the country for more than a year, only intervened after the building was set ablaze. Troops provided cover for firefighters, who eventually extinguished the flames.

The army also evacuated employees from the TV station, but only after gunmen massed near it and threatened to destroy it, said Nadim Mounla, the station's chief.

Meanwhile, a rocket-propelled grenade hit the fence of Hariri's heavily protected residence, security officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak to the media.

Hariri and his ally, Druse lawmaker Walid Jumblatt, were besieged in their homes, and Prime Minister Fuad Saniora and several ministers were holed up in Saniora's downtown office surrounded by troops and police.

The escalating fighting could have implications for the entire Middle East at a time when Sunni-Shiite tensions are high. The tensions are fueled in part by the rivalry between predominantly Shiite Iran, which sponsors Hezbollah, and Sunni Arab countries like Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

The crackle of gunfire and occasional explosions continued to reverberate across the western, largely Muslim, sector of Beirut Friday.

On Hamra Street and in other neighborhoods once dominated by government supporters, Shiite gunmen roamed unopposed. Dozens of cars and shops had been damaged by the fighting.

"We entered Karakol Druse. There is no Jumblatt and no Hariri here," a Shiite gunman told Associated Press Television News.

"We entered the neighborhood. They threw away their weapons and ran," said another gunman as one of his colleagues tore down a poster of Hariri.

The scenes were a grim reminder of Lebanon's devastating 1975-90 civil war in which 150,000 were killed and parts of the city wrecked as it was carved into warring sectarian enclaves.

Street clashes exploded into gunbattles in parts of Beirut on Thursday afternoon after Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah accused Lebanon's Western-backed government of declaring war on his Shiite militant group. It was the militant leader's strongest comments since Lebanon's political crisis erupted 17 months ago.

Hariri later went on television urging Hezbollah to pull its fighters back and "save Lebanon from hell." He proposed a compromise that would involve the army, one of the sole national institutions respected by Lebanon's long deadlocked factions.

But Hezbollah and its allies swiftly rejected the offer.

Officials with Lebanon's pro-government majority called an emergency of lawmakers in a mountain town in the country's Christian heartland, LBC-TV, a pro-government Christian station reported Friday. But it was unclear who would be able to attend since several lawmakers were holed up in their homes or offices.

"Even if Hezbollah's militia took everything we remain the constitutional authority," Cabinet Minister Ahmed Fatfat told Al-Arabiya TV from Saniora's compound.

The unrest has virtually shut down Lebanon's international airport and barricades closed major highways.

Hezbollah first blocked roads in Beirut on Wednesday to enforce a strike called by labor unions, but confrontations quickly spread and became more violent. Factions threw up roadblocks and checkpoints dividing Beirut into sectarian enclaves, and the chattering of automatic weapons and thumps of rocket-propelled grenades echoed across the city overnight.

The clashes are the latest turn in a test of wills between the Hezbollah-led opposition and the Saniora government.

The government, which is allied with the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, has only a slim majority in parliament. The two sides have been locked in a power struggle that has kept government at a standstill and the country without a president since November.