BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Gunfire erupted Saturday in Beirut's anti-Syrian Christian sector after pro-Syrian protesters arrived in the area, witnesses said. Volleys of gunfire were heard shortly after a convoy of cars carrying pictures of Syrian President Bashar Assad, which had earlier demonstrated in Muslim south Beirut, headed later to the Christian sector of Ashrafieh, a center of anti-Syrian sentiment.
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People in the cars exchanged insults with about a dozen men. Gunmen then opened fire from the cars as they drove around, the witnesses said. There appeared to be no casualties.Elsewhere in the city, including the main Martyrs' Square, protests for or against Syria continued peacefully amid heavy Lebanese army presence. Many Lebanese blame Syria for the Feb. 14 assassination of their former prime minister, Rafik Hariri, and and nations around the world have demanded that Syria withdraw its 15,000 troops. Assad on Saturday announced a two-stage pullback of Syrian forces to the Lebanese border, but failed to address broad international demands that he completely withdraw the troops after nearly 30 years in the country. |