Lebanon mourns dead of Beirut blast protest as spectre of civil war looms

Lebanon was in mourning on October 15, 2021, for seven victims of armed clashes in Beirut, including a 24-year-old woman who was hit by a stray bullet while sitting at home. The hours of sustained gunfire between rival militias raised the spectre of a new civil war and prompted Michel Aoun, the president, to say it was

“unacceptable that weapons are once more the means of communication among Lebanese rivals”,

referring to the 15-year civil war that ended in 1990.

The violence began during a protest by Shia Muslims against the investigation into last year’s port explosion. An unidentified rooftop sniper opened fire on a crowd of hundreds of supporters of the militant group Hezbollah and its political allies as they gathered in front of the Palais de Justice, Beirut’s central court, shortly after 11am. Fighters from Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, were then involved in sustained exchanges of gunfire — using AK-47s, heavy machineguns and rocket-propelled grenades.

Lebanon is in crisis and many say on the brink of collapse. Bordering Syria to its north and east, and Israel to its south, Lebanon occupies a critical space in the Eastern Mediterranean. Its collapse would risk spilling over into surrounding areas. It has a number of massive problems. There has been the vast refugee population from Syria. A permanent Palestinian refugee presence. The government is fragile and on the brink of another collapse. Hezbollah (terrorist group) are in that government. Fuel shortages this week shut down its main power stations. And civil war looms again.

In Isaiah 2 which speaks of the ”day of the Lord” coming on the world – the first nation mentioned is…Lebanon. The collapse of Lebanon could be the starting gun for Armageddon….

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