LEBANON: Lebanon minister Pierre Gemayel shot dead; relatives, officials and rival factions urge calm

Lebanon's factions set aside a government power struggle on Tuesday (November 21) to urge their countrymen to avoid civil strife after the assassination of anti-Syrian Christian cabinet minister Pierre Gemayel. Gemayel, 34-year-old industry minister, was killed near Beirut on Tuesday after at least three gunmen rammed their car into his vehicle, then leapt out and riddled it with bullets. Gemayel's father urged supporters to remain calm and avoid retribution and asked people to pray and contemplate the meaning of his son's "martyrdom". "Pierre has been martyred for the sake of the nation. I call on all those who appreciate Pierre's martyrdom to preserve his cause and for all of us to remain at the service of Lebanon. We don't want to desecrate this martyrdom with reactions and revenge," former President Amin Gemayel told reporters outside a hospital where the body of his son Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel was taken. Grieving supporters and officials crowded the hospital. Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, who had told Reuters last week that his anti-Syrian majority coalition would not cave in to Hezbollah's demand, also called for calm. "We won't let them (perpetrators) cause an internal strife and the international tribunal will definitely be set, the international tribunal will definitely be set. But we should not be swept by emotions that can cause an internal strife," said anti-Syrian lawmaker Walid Jumblatt. Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said Gemayel's killing would make Lebanon more determined to set up an international court to try the suspected killers of Rafik al-Hariri. Many Lebanese blame Syria for the killing of Hariri in a suicide truck bombing in February 2005. "This attack makes us more determined to set up the international court, the tribunal that would stop the criminals and is the means to protect all Lebanese and preserve their security and their freedom and put an end to this ongoing series of assassination," Siniora said. In a television address, the country's president Emile Lahoud condemned the attack and vowed to go after the perpetrators. "We will not allow this terrorist act to go unpunished. We will do the impossible to find the perpetrators because I assure you that those criminals are against all Lebanese and in this sense, I would like to reiterate that our unity is our strength and the only way to get to the bottom of this conspiracy is to work together and find all solutions to all our problems as soon as possible, " Lahoud said. Supporters who gathered outside Gemayel's party headquarters burnt tyres as soldiers stood by. In the streets of Beirut, residents were angry and feared there could be more attacks. "Problems will begin again like when they killed Prime Minister Hariri right now we have to wait to see what will happen," said Beirut resident Ceasar. "This is an attempt to spread chaos in the country , and it aims to topple the government since they can't topple it by democratic way and it's an attempt to spread chaos and strife to Lebanon," said another Beirut resident Abdullah Ibrahim. At least three gunmen rammed their car into Gemayel's vehicle, then leapt out and riddled it with bullets, firing at Gemayel with silencer-equipped automatic weapons at point-blank range in the Christian Sin el-Fil neighbourhood, witnesses said. Ten bullet holes were seen around the window of the driver's seat of his grey car. The two front seats were soaked in blood. The son of assassinated former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri blamed Syria for the killing, but Damascus condemned the murder. Gemayel, 34, was rushed to hospital where he later died of his wounds. Television footage showed hundreds of angry and weeping family members and supporters gathering at the hospital. The killing is certain to heighten tensions in Lebanon amid a deep political crisis pitting the anti-Syrian majority against the pro-Damascus opposition led by Hezbollah, which is determined to topple what it sees as a pro-U.S. government. Gemayel, elected to parliament in 2000 and again in 2005, is the third Lebanese anti-Syrian figure to be assassinated since former prime minister Hariri's killing in February 2005. Gemayel, industry minister, was a member of the Christian Phalange Party founded by his grandfather and the son of former President Amin Gemayel. His uncle Bashir Gemayel was killed in September 1982 after he was elected president during Israel's invasion of Lebanon. The Christian Phalange party controlled one of the largest militias fighting in the 1975-1990 Lebanese civil war. Pierre, like his father and late uncle, was a strong opponent of the influence of Syria, who many Lebanese blame for the assassination of Rafik al-Hariri. The Phalange Party called on supporters to show self-restraint and foil "attempts to destabilise Lebanon".

ITN Source | November 22, 2006

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