Lebanese March to Protest Occupation

Tens of thousands of Lebanese marched today in Beirut to demand an end to the Syrian occupation. In an effort to show national unity in a country where religious conflict led to civil war, some marchers held a Koran in one hand and a cross in the other. The photo below shows the protest march:

Meanwhile, President Bush said that Syria “must end its occupation of Lebanon.” And the head of the Arab League said that he has Prime Minister Assad’s assurance that Syria soon will begin withdrawing its troops.
So it appears that some good may come out of the murder of Rafik al-Hariri.
If, like me, you haven’t followed events in Lebanon closely in recent years, the Council on Foreign Relations has a nice primer on Lebanon’s recent history and current situation.