Students from what was then the opposition were beaten by security forces during a protest on August 10, 2001. (Credit: Joseph Barrak/AFP)
The sun shone bright on March 14, 2005. A protest was planned— as had been the case on every Monday since the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on Feb. 14 — by Lebanon’s now broad opposition to the Syrian regime, the main suspect in the Beirut bombing. But this particular Monday carried a different symbolism from the previous ones: it followed the March 8 rally, organized by Syria’s allies in the other major square of downtown Beirut, Riad al-Solh Square, to say “thank you to Syria.”The young protestors who had been camping out at Martyrs’ Square for the last month were feeling on edge. The army encircled the square, seemingly making access difficult. At the time, no one could predict how many Lebanese would heed the call. Around noon, just before the commemoration at 12:55 p.m. — the exact minute the...
The sun shone bright on March 14, 2005. A protest was planned— as had been the case on every Monday since the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on Feb. 14 — by Lebanon’s now broad opposition to the Syrian regime, the main suspect in the Beirut bombing. But this particular Monday carried a different symbolism from the previous ones: it followed the March 8 rally, organized by Syria’s allies in the other major square of downtown Beirut, Riad al-Solh Square, to say “thank you to Syria.”The young protestors who had been camping out at Martyrs’ Square for the last month were feeling on edge. The army encircled the square, seemingly making access difficult. At the time, no one could predict how many Lebanese would heed the call. Around noon, just before the commemoration at 12:55 p.m. — the...
