Tens of thousands of Lebanese citizens rallied on Sunday in Harissa, north of Beirut, in a protest against Syria and Hizbullah, the Lebanese Daily Star reports.
The crowds, mostly Christians, gathered in front of the local Maronite Cathedral, where leader of the Lebanese Forces (LF) party, Samir Ja’ja’, made a speech. Referring to the "Divine Victory Rally" held by Hizbullah last Friday, Ja’ja’ said: "We are the victors and yet we do not feel it was a victory but rather that a real catastrophe befell our country."
Ja’ja’ attacked Hizbullah for its call to create a strong national unity government, saying a strong state could not be built with a "statelet within its midst." The Christian leader called to disarm Hizbullah and asserted this was the only way to build a strong state.
Ja’ja’ also said Lebanon would never let Syria reclaim its influence over the country.
Divine Victory Rally
Sunday’s rally followed Hizbullah’s demonstration last Friday, where leader of the organization, Sheikh Hassan Na’srallah, urged the Lebanese government to step down and be replaced by a unity government. Hundreds of thousands of Lebanese heard Na’srallah say, "no army in the world could [force Hizbullah] to disarm." Na’srallah added that his armed resistance movement was now stronger than it was before the war with Israel, still holding 20,000 rockets ready to be launched at Israel.