NEVER DEMONSTRATE YOUR OWN WEAKNESS:

Pro-Syrian protest falls short of promised 1 million marchers: Thousands take to streets in Beirut to hear speakers denounce UN Resolution 1559 and U.S. regional policy (Nayla Assaf, December 01, 2004, Lebanon Daily Star)

An estimated 200,000 pro-Syrian demonstrators marched in Beirut on Tuesday - well short of the government's promise to procure 1 million protestors - for the rally against the UN resolution demanding Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon.

With banners condemning Resolution 1559 and pictures of Syrian President Bashar Assad and his Lebanese ally, President Emile Lahoud - tens of thousands marched from all over the country into Martyrs' Square in the heart of Beirut.

Although 1559 is primarily directed against Syria, no similar protest was recorded there. [...]

The protest enjoyed the support of the government, and although Lebanese authorities did not officially organize the protest, they did everything possible to ensure good turnout. [...]

Some political observers suggested the protest could deepen Lebanon's internal divisions.

Earlier, opposition politicians criticized the demonstration and warned of the consequences of Lebanon's defying the United Nations.

"On the eve of his overthrow, Romanian President Nicolae Ceaucescu, like other dictators in Eastern Europe, was able to draw millions on the streets of Bucharest," former Foreign Minister Fares Boueiz said in comments published in the leading An-Nahar newspaper Tuesday.

"But this did not prevent their downfall," he said, referring to the mass demonstration in Bucharest in 1989 that turned against the government and led to the downfall of Ceaucescu.

The official assistance prompted local media to say the demonstration was "sponsored by the government."

When contacted by The Daily Star, official sources at the Internal Security Forces said that the protestors numbered 1 million. However, observers said that number was more likely between 250,000 and 300 000.

Many of the protestors were school children.

Baby Assad seems intent on racing Kim Jong-il to the door.

Posted by Orrin Judd at December 1, 2004 10:15 AM