Martyrdom on Valentine's Day

In Lebanon, Valentine's Day is not just Valentine's Day. February 14th is the day that Rafiq Hariri was assassinated in 2005. That made this past Sunday the fifth anniversary of the bomb blast that exploded outside the St. George Hotel, killing 21 people along with Hariri.

Hariri was a Lebanese billionaire who made his wealth in the construction business in Saudi Arabia. When the Civil War ended in 1991, Hariri returned home and served as the nation's prime minister, overseeing the reconstruction of Beirut. It was Hariri who partly owned and oversaw Solidere, the company that bought up most of downtown and rebuilt what we see today. As one commentator puts it, Hariri was an "effective corrupt leader" (see http://qifanabki.com/).

Here is the site of Hariri's death - the St. George Hotel, still unreconstructed. We live a few blocks away and walk past it every time we go downtown. Most people seem to suspect that Syria played the main role in killing Hariri. After his tenure as prime minister ended, Hariri started to criticize the 25 year military presence of Syria in Lebanon.

In death, Hariri became a much greater unifying force than in life. Angry protestors took to the streets in February and March 2005, demanding independence from Syria, an investigation into Hariri's murder, and the formation of a new Lebanese government. On March 14, 2005, over 1 million people gathered in Martyr's Square - 25% of the population living in all of Lebanon. The protests worked, to a certain extent. Syria, while still maintaining a covert presence, pulled its army out of Lebanon. This is what the folks back in the U.S. (especially the Bush administration) dubbed the "Cedar Revolution."

Given the historical importance of February 14, 2005, we knew there would be something going on downtown, but we didn't really understand what we were about to witness. (Just in case you don't recognize the flags: the Lebanese flag is red and white with a cedar tree in the center, and the light blue and white flags are for the party led by Rafiq Hariri's son, the current prime minister.)

The honking horns and people blasting Hariri speeches on their car speakers started the night before and grew in intensity on Sunday morning. It was a hot day with highs pushing 80 degrees. When we made our way to the Corniche we witnessed an amateur parade of hundreds of cars driving to Martyr's Square.

People from across Lebanon drove through our neighborhood in a celebration of Hariri's martyrdom. It was hard for us Americans in our late-20's to relate to. Hariri is their Kennedy and Lincoln rolled into one. Like Kennedy, he was a slain charismatic national leader, controversial during his life and beloved in death. Like Lincoln, he was a man who tried to unify the nation throughout its Civil War, and was ultimately killed trying to make the country whole. But Americans have never turned the death of our national martyrs into a celebration like they do over here.

This is something that only underdogs can relate to. Despite the odds, Lebanon is still standing and hasn't devoured itself in another civil conflict nor has it allowed another foreign power to violate its sovereignty in such a blatant way. The day was like an SEC football tailgate party combined with the patriotism of Obama's recent inaugural and a massive spontaneous dance party.

While few openly criticize the martyred Hariri, that fact did not stop the Lebanese Armed Forces from taking some necessary precautions. Here they are safeguarding our neighborhood McDonalds.

We love how the Lebanese seem to combine everything they do with reckless self-endangerment.

Beirut is a big small town. Walking around Martyr's Square, we bumped into several people we know. Here are some of Megan's best friends from work, Bethany and Kari.

The Lebanese are always friendly, but normally they don't ask you to take their picture with your camera. Walking around the rally, about a dozen people asked or gestured for us to take their picture.

So who killed Hariri and will they be brought to justice? The United Nations established an independent tribunal to investigate. Five years later they still have not released their findings. Saad Hariri, Rafiq's 40 year old son and current Prime Minister, has moved away from the anti-Syrian rhetoric of 2005. Just a few months ago, he made his first official visit to Damascus where he met with Bashar Assad, President of Syria and the man who a lot of people hold responsible for his father's death.

This sign above states, "Yes for national unity. Yes for the international tribunal. Yes for the gallows." That sentiment did not seem to be the predominant one at the rally. The politicians who spoke were much more conciliatory towards Syria. The Lebanese seem to increasingly accept the reality that they have a much larger and more powerful neighbor who they have to live with, for better or for worse.

On the way home on this hot, muggy Mediterranean Sunday, we passed by the spot where it all started, where Hariri and 21 others were killed by a massive car bomb.

The crowds were still a few kilometers away on Martyr's Square. The actual site of Hariri's murder was surprisingly quiet.