People whose lives have been decimated by conflict should receive as much assistance as we can give them. Yet Palestinian refugees from Syria, escaping the same violence, destruction and dangers and seeking the same protection, relief and refuge as their Syrian counterparts, are being excluded on
If history offers a lesson it is that no one group in Lebanon can eliminate or subdue the other. The challenge is devising a working solution that benefits, and is accepted by, all major Lebanese communal components.
As sectarian tensions grow throughout the Middle East the fate of the region’s Christians is a growing cause for concern. However Lebanon, despite its long history of inter-communal violence, seems to be relatively well placed to address this particular issue.
Beyond their regrettable cost in terms of human lives, "Innocence of Muslims" and the subsequent protests that spread across the Arab world ultimately entrap the world in a binary entrenchment reminiscent of the civilizational justifications for the War on Terror.
The Pope may have praised peaceful religious coexistence in Lebanon during his recent visit, but "Innocence of Muslims" and Hezbollah's calls to take to the streets undermine this exceedingly optimistic common conception.
It has increasingly become a question of when - not if - the violence in Syria will lead to sectarian fighting in Lebanon. This reflects a commonly held belief that conflict in Lebanon is shaped from outside its borders; a belief that risks ignoring the ways in which Lebanon can be responsible for
Turkey’s desire to re-orient its foreign policy towards the Middle East and gain influence with the Arab Awakening seems to have been undone by its approach towards the Syrian conflict.
The former Information Minister has been apprehended trying to smuggle explosives into Lebanon. Away from the media focus on street clashes, subtler political trends threaten Lebanon's years of building a fragile peace.
The civil war in Syria and unrest in Lebanon may have deeper roots than meets the eye. In fact, they may very well be the tragic result of centuries of colonisation and secularisation, as recently emphasised by Walid Jumblatt.
Is the Syrian crisis spilling over into Lebanon behind the recent chaotic events? Events that occur on a semi-regular basis, when viewed in relation to the neighbouring conflict in Syria, warrant far greater attention.
A Lebanon-based journalist examines the possibility of violence spreading from Syria to Lebanon. There are reasons enough to fear the worst, but also signs of real restraint.
As the fireworks of the opening ceremony of the Olympics went off in London, gunfire was resounding once again in Tripoli.
