BBC (Feb 18): Syria stung by Hariri death fall-out

[Jack Rabbit]

From the BBC Online
Dated Friday February 18

Syria stung by Hariri death fall-out
By Magdi Abdelhadi
BBC World Service Arab affairs analyst

Only hours after former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's assassination, politicians began speaking of "the martyr Rafik Hariri", a term reserved for those who die in a war fighting the enemy.

The description underlines a widely held belief that Mr Hariri was killed by the external enemies of Lebanon and not because of any other internal Lebanese power struggle.

The question is who are Lebanon's enemies?

Those opposed to Syria's pervasive influence over Lebanon's political life are in no doubt that the devastating explosion that killed Mr Hariri and his bodyguards on Monday was the work of Syria.

Read more.