Unrest in Lebanon: Day 4 in the Afternoon

A number of my international colleagues from UNRWA are now in the mountain area just outside Beirut as most of them were living in Hamra (West Beirut), an area which subject to most of the fighting. One of them had bullets fly through his window. So I am following events closely to keep them updated by SMS as things unfold in Beirut.

After the relative calm last night and this morning, things have started to fire up again. More roads have been blocked. Gunmen have entered the building of Hariri's Future TV station and destroyed broadcast equipment. The Armenian Radio station was also burnt down just an hour ago.

Lebanese army soldiers were deployed in some West Beirut neighbourhoods probably to demonstrate that the government still has some control over those areas. Two people just died and 12 were injured for a shooting at a Sunni funeral in Beirut.

In the North of Lebanon, in Akkar, gunmen have besieged Arabya TV journalists and taken heads of municipalities there. Tripoli and other areas in North Lebanon have been subject to violence during the day.

As a result, Lebanese journalists have started a march in favour of freedom of press and have arrived at Hariri's Future TV station.

Roads to the aiport and to the Syrian border remain closed with armed checkpoints.

As expected regional and world powers have started making statements about the situation, as reported in the Washington Post: Read Article and by CNN: Read Article. The US accuses Iran and Syria. Iran accuses the US and Israel and the Europeans are keeping quiet drawing up plans for the evacuation of their nationals as mentioned by Lebanon Now: Read Article

Now I am watching the Prime Minister, Fouad Siniora address the people of Lebanon on local TV.