Hizbollah Blames Bush For Unrest.

Hizbullah Secretary-General Nasrallah on Jan. 30 used the Shi'ite Ashura commemoration to accuse the US and Israel of being responsible for the unrest in Lebanon. He told a rally in the southern suburbs of Beirut: "The one who fomented chaos in Lebanon, who destroyed Lebanon, who killed women and children, old and young in Lebanon, is George Bush". He accused the US of ordering Israel to wage war against Hizbullah last summer as part of what he called the American campaign against "resistance groups" in the Middle East.

The war started on July 12 when Hizbullah captured two Israeli soldiers and killed three. The speech followed remarks by the US president on Jan. 29 in which he deplored the Jan. 23 and 25 violence and accused Hizbullah, Iran and Syria of trying to destabilise Lebanon.

The Jan. 25 violence took place mainly between the supporters of the Hizbullah and Amal and Sunni and Druze backers of the government. Rival Christian groups had clashed on Jan. 23.

In the southern town of Nabatiyeh, in the Shi'ite heartland, thousands of young men carried out the Ashura ritual of cutting themselves and allowing the blood to flow freely. The FT on Jan. 31 quoted one of the Shi'ites in the south as saying the Shi'ites harboured no ill will against the Sunnis but that the Sunnis were less tolerant of them. The paper quoted a "young woman watching the procession of bleeding young men" as saying the ritual showed the "Shia capacity for sacrificing for a cause".

Bush Hits Iran, Syria, Hizbullah: President Bush on Jan. 29 said: "While Lebanon's friends seek to help the Lebanese government build a free, sovereign, and prosperous country, Syria, Iran, and Hizbullah are working to destabilise Lebanese society. Their goals are clear... They foment violence in order to prevent the establishment of a special tribunal in response to former Prime Minister Hariri's assassination, to prevent full implementation of UN Security Council resolutions calling for Hizbullah's disarmament and to bring down Lebanon's democratically elected government".

Iran and Syria have denied such accusations. Tehran was the target of Bush's warning earlier on Jan. 29 that the US would respond firmly if Iran fuelled the violence in Iraq. Iran is facing a US-led diplomatic offensive against its nuclear programme.

Bush pledged continued support for Beirut, saying: "Lebanon's friends have pledged a total of $7.6 billion...I will ask Congress for $770 million to contribute to this cause. With this pledge, total US support for Lebanon since the summer 2006 conflict, including the $230 million pledged at the Stockholm conference last August, will equal approximately $1 billion. This is a strong symbol of the American people's support for and commitment to the future of Lebanon.

Bush added: "All those who seek a peaceful, constitutional solution to the crisis in Lebanon deserve the support of the international community, but those responsible for creating chaos must be called to account. The United States will continue to support Lebanon's government as it seeks a peaceful and prosperous future for all the people of Lebanon".

Nasrallah Sees Civil War Plot: Nasrallah on Jan. 29 asked: "Why is it that only the countries with resistance movements, like Lebanon, Palestine and Iraq, are now threatened by civil wars?"

A heavily guarded Nasrallah made his comments from a balcony of a building barricaded by several layers of Hizbullah security men, overlooking a massive sea of black-clothed Ashura mourners who had arrived from various corners of Beirut's southern suburbs. He said: "Lebanon is a land that cannot be defeated or humiliated. Lebanon has always been the graveyard of invaders, and it will be the graveyard of any new invaders".

Nasrallah directed the first half of his speech to the US and Israel, and reiterated his party's "divine victory" in the summer 2006 war with Israel, adding that "Israel now is weaker than a spider's web". He said: "I stress that the resistance is ready...and those who think that the resistance has been weakened or it's now in despair or tired, they are delusional... The future of Israel is death, and the future of this umma [the Islamic nation] is life".

General themes of refusing "to bow" or "be humiliated" dominated the chants of Ashura mourners on Jan. 30 as men, women and children marched and beat their chests in a sign of grief over the killing in battle of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson, Imam Hussein. Some carried red, yellow and black flags with religious slogans and others wore headbands with the names of Hussein and his family members. Nearby mourners followed with chants of "down with Siniora".

In the immediate vicinity of Hizbullah's control, no self-flagellation occurred, as the party has banned the spilling of blood during Ashura, in line with a decree from Imam Khomeini - the founder of Iran's Shi'ite theocracy.

Smaller rallies were held in Beirut and other regions during which Shi'ites marked Ashura by cutting themselves with swords and chains. "I feel less guilty when I spill blood", said Ali Kalaakish, an Amal supporter, whose face was covered with blood. Similar scenes were seen in the southern town of Nabatiyeh, where men marched with blood streaming from their heads after performing the ritual to express remorse for not having saved Imam Hussein.