After months of increasing political anxiety in Lebanon following the failure to elect a president, tensions rose last week, in what appears to have been a calculated challenge to Hezbollah on the part of the US and Lebanon's ruling coalition.

On May 8th, Hezbollah leader Nasrallah held a press conference in Beirut and condemned a decision by the Lebanese cabinet to outlaw Hezbollah's telecommunication network and dismiss the head of Airport security for his alleged ties to the party. Nasrallah said their private communication network was critical to their success during the July 2006 war with Israel. Hezbollah-led opposition forces quickly overpowered pro-government militias and took over large parts of the capital city of Beirut before handing over control to the Lebanese army. The fighting shifted to the north and east of the country over the weekend and fresh clashes were reported in Beirut on May 12th.

Between May 7th and May 11th, armed clashes between Hezbollah-led opposition groups and US-backed pro-government forces left at least 81 dead and many more wounded. "This is very much similar to what is happening in Sudan, in Palestine, in Iraq, in Afghanistan and Somalia, [where] the United States is basically instigating and funding civil wars," says professor As`ad Abu Khalil.

Monday May 12th Peace Vigil At U.C. Merced

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