ASK THE ISRAELI MILITARY IF THEY THINK THE SUNNI CAN BEAT HEZBOLLAH:

Protests bring Lebanon to a halt: Hezbollah supporters block roads with piles of blazing tires and challenge soldiers, who don't interfere (Megan K. Stack, January 24, 2007, LA Times)

The opposition, dominated by the powerful Shiite Muslim Hezbollah, had called for a general strike Tuesday, and the roadblocks gave people little choice but to stay home.

The roads to Beirut's airport were impassable, blocked by sand berms, garbage and roaring fires. Some flights were canceled, and arriving passengers languished at the airport.

The roadblocks in the capital were being cleared overnight, but the opposition threatened further escalation if the government didn't step down.

Hour after tense hour, the army and security services gave free rein to the protesters. While young men barricaded neighborhoods and halted cars to interrogate the drivers, soldiers and police officers stood by and watched. Security forces in riot gear lined some streets, and armored personnel carriers crunched over the rubble. But to the delight of some Lebanese and the disgust of others, they didn't interfere.

"They are on our side," crowed Kamal Yehiya, a 20-year-old Hezbollah supporter who was hurling rubble into a fire near downtown.