Hezbollah Gunmen Take Beirut Neighborhoods

Unchallenged by the army, Iranian-backed Hezbollah routed Sunnis loyal to the U.S.-allied government and seized control of large swaths of Beirut's Muslim sector Friday, proving it is the most powerful force in Lebanon.

The move dramatically strengthened the Shiite militant group's hand in bitter political battles over the country's future.

At one point, about 100 Hezbollah militants wearing matching camouflage uniforms and carrying assault rifles marched down the city's main commercial street in a display of power meant to show the government who's in charge.

They took up positions in corners and sidewalks and stopped the few cars braving the empty streets to search their trunks.

Nearby, dozens of fighters from another Hezbollah-allied party appeared, some with their faces masked and carrying rocket-propelled grenade launchers. Elsewhere, Hezbollah-allied militiamen from the Syrian Social Nationalist Party drove in cars, firing in the air in celebration.

Lebanon's army largely stood aside as Shiite fighters scattered their opponents in street fights to occupy most of the capital's Muslim sector.

It was Lebanon's worst sectarian fighting in more than a decade and a grim harkening back to its devastating 1975-90 civil war. That war left Beirut divided into two main sectors, one predominantly Muslim and the other mainly Christian.

At least 15 people have been died in three days of violence.

Hours after the takeover, however, Hezbollah fighters began withdrawing from streets they had occupied and Lebanese troops began moving into some neighborhoods. Others remained on street corners across the area they control as the fighting began to ease.

Christian leader Michel Aoun, a close ally of Hezbollah, declared after Hezbollah's triumph that "the train is back on the right track" and predicted the situation will begin to de-escalate.

The pullback signaled Hezbollah did not intend a lasting takeover of the Sunni Muslim parts of Beirut, unlike the takeover of Gaza a year ago by the Islamic militant Hamas.

Hezbollah and allied gunmen steered away from government buildings and made no attempt to advance toward the city's Christian sector. Christian neighborhoods were peaceful, with troops deployed along the former old civil war demarcation line.

Yet the Hezbollah show-of-force was certain to both strengthen its own political position and deeply worry a Middle East and Western world nervous about Iran's influence and intentions in the region.

The Western-backed government and Hezbollah-led opposition have been deadlocked in a power struggle for 17 months over control of the government.

The stunning turn of events also dealt a blow to the U.S., which has long considered Hezbollah a terrorist organization backed by Syria and Iran, and has been a supporter of Prime Minister Fuad Saniora's government and its army over the last three years.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Hezbollah is killing and injuring innocent civilians and is "seeking to protect their state-within-a-state."

White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said the U.S. was very troubled by Hezbollah's actions.

"We urge Hezbollah to stop their attempt to defy the lawful decisions taken by the democratically elected Lebanese government. We also urge Iran and Syria to stop their support of Hezbollah and its destabilizing effects on Lebanon," he added. "We have confidence in the government of Lebanon."

Syria and Qatar agreed Friday that the crisis in Lebanon was an internal issue, and expressed hope that the Lebanese would find a solution through dialogue, reports CBS News' George Baghdadi in Damascus.

The joint statement was issued after a series of discussions earlier in the day between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Qatari Emir Prince Hamad Bin Khaleefa Al-Thani.

"Talks dealt with the current developments in the region, in particular Lebanon, and view points were identical; that the crisis was an internal Lebanese issue," the statement said.

The political crisis has its roots in allegations of Syrian and Iranian interference in Lebanon. Hezbollah and its allies bolted out of the Cabinet 17 months ago and since then, Saniora has consistently refused their demands for veto power in a future administration.

Hezbollah, in turn, has besieged downtown Beirut with a sit-in, and has blocked the election of a president in parliament, leaving the country without a head of state since November.

Sporadic street clashes had broken out in the last year. But this week's intense violence began after the government tried to fire a Hezbollah-linked airport security chief and shut down a Hezbollah communications network.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, in a fiery speech Thursday, called those government decisions a "declaration of war." Shortly after his speech, the worst of the street clashes erupted and the Shiite forces overran Beirut neighborhoods.

"The government tried to show force by shutting down Hezbollah. Hezbollah showed force by pushing back the government," said Jon Alterman, director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies Middle East Program in Washington.

"Hezbollah emerged stronger and the government emerged weaker, but that's not to say that the government is weaker than Hezbollah," Alterman added.

Lebanon's top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah, said Friday he was confident that Lebanon will not drift toward an Iraq-styled sectarian strife.But the street violence stunned many in the country, leaving city streets empty and people huddling inside their homes, fearful and uncertain about what might happen next.

"I'm shocked," Iman Humaydan, a 51-year-old Druse author, said of the takeover. "It reminds me of 1982 when Israel invaded Lebanon and caused hatred among the people. And now once again people feel hate."

Nationals from several countries, including Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, have left Lebanon by way of Syria in large numbers. France and Italy said they were preparing for an eventual evacuation of their citizens.

Gunmen set fire to a newspaper's offices and a Future TV station building belonging to the top Sunni leader, Saad Hariri. They also forced another station to shut down.

The fighters began withdrawing to Shiite neighborhoods about eight hours later, jumping into pickup trucks and SUVs that sped away. Lebanese troops moved in. But some gunmen remained on street corners, or sat inside parked vehicles.

Later Friday afternoon, anti-government gunmen loyal to a pro-Syrian group attacked and set on fire a two-story building where Future TV have their archives.

Reporters Without Borders condemned Hezbollah's armed attacks and threats against news media owned by the Hariri family.

Hariri, the son of assassinated former premier Rafik Hariri, and his ally Druse political leader Walid Jumblatt were holed up in their residences, protected by Lebanese troops. Opposition leaders said they would not be harmed.

At one point, a rocket-propelled grenade hit the fence of Hariri's heavily protected residence, security officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak to the media.

Late Friday, a group of gunmen fired about a dozen bullets at a statue of Rafik Hariri next to the seafront road where he was killed in a massive 2005 truck bombing.

Meanwhile, Saniora and five Cabinet ministers were at the heavily protected prime minister's compound in downtown Beirut, with militants nearby making no move against it.

Other officials of the pro-government coalition convened in emergency session in the Christian heartland north of the city, areas that have remained peaceful.

After the meeting, they issued a statement calling on the army to take control of the streets and urging Arab and international intervention to pressure the countries that support Hezbollah - meaning Iran and Syria.

"The bloody coup d'etat aims at returning Syria to Lebanon and placing Iran on the Mediterranean," said the statement read by Christian pro-government leader Samir Geagea. "Violence will not terrorize us, but it will increase our resolve," he said.

Jumblatt, whose demand for the removal of the airport security chief inflamed tensions with Hezbollah, said Nasrallah got "nervous" by the removal of the officer and seized West Beirut. He said that was a "mistake."

"Things just can't be solved here except on the ground. And controlling west Beirut will lead to nowhere," he told al-Jazeera English television.

Hezbollah hanging on to its weapons will lead to two states on one land, he added.

"One day, when (Nasrallah) accepts that, he should be included into the Lebanese security systems."

Hezbollah has long boasted about its military success in fighting Israel in summer of 2006 and that battle boosted its popularity. But the Shiite group also appeared wary of the consequences of its takeover, particularly in a nation of 17 various Christian and Muslim sects.

Hezbollah was taking care not to antagonize its Christian allies and smaller groups within the Sunni and Druse communities. But the fighting was certain to leave scars, particularly because Shiites took over Sunni and Druse neighborhoods.

The army has remained above the political fray and has refrained from using force to open Hezbollah roadblocks or intervene in the clashes for fear of being dragged into sectarian conflict that could divide the military. The army broke up along sectarian lines in the 1975-90 civil war.

The military and the police are considered the last remaining state institutions that are united despite the political crisis.

It also would be too risky for the under-armed military to take on Hezbollah, a highly organized and trained military force that fields thousands of fighters and possesses thousands of rockets. Hezbollah withstood more than a month of onslaught in 2006 by Israel, which has the most powerful army in the Middle East.