Washington Reacts to Wednesday”s Clashes
The United States has said clashes between opposition backers and government supporters in and around Beirut came as a result of cabinet decisions to launch a probe into a private telephone network set up by Hizbullah and to remove the airport”s security chief over alleged ties to the Shiite group.
"I know that these demonstrations have taken place under the guise of labor demonstrations, but I believe that Hizbullah has actually linked them back to some moves that the cabinet had made. So I think that that reveals the action for what it is," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Wednesday.
"The Lebanese government is dealing with the issue," he said in his press briefing.
Demonstrators supported by Hizbullah paralyzed much of Beirut with roadblocks of burning tires Wednesday. The labor strike turned violent when opposition and government supporters began throwing stones at each other, and gunfire and explosions rang out in some areas.
The strike was called by labor unions after they rejected a government pay raise offer as insufficient.
"Nobody wants to see any violent confrontations occur. And I would just note that these kinds of actions serve only to hurt the interests of the Lebanese people," McCormack said.
"If you have access to the airport road cut off, that, of course, affects tourism, which is a real source of revenue for the Lebanese economy," he added.