Beirut Bomb Blast: Call For Demo At Funeral

Lebanon's opposition has called for an anti-Syria demonstration at this afternoon's funeral of a security chief killed in a car bombing blamed on the regime in Damascus.

General Wissam al Hassan, a prominent figure opposed to President Bashar al Assad, died in the attack in the capital Beirut which killed a total of eight people on Friday. 

There are fears that the devastating attack threatens to bring Syria's civil war to Lebanon.

Last night, protesters calling for the Lebanese government to resign set up tents in the capital burned tyres and set up roadblocks.

Lebanese troops stood guard at road junctions and official buildings in the capital as the Lebanese cabinet held an emergency meeting to decide on what, if any, action to take.

Prime Minister Najib Mikati later said the blast was linked to the civil war in neighbouring Syria and revealed that he had agreed to stay on as premier at President Michel Sleiman's request because of "national interest".

Brig-Gen al Hassan, 47, headed an investigation over the summer that led to the arrest of former information minister Michel Samaha, one of Mr Assad's most loyal allies in Lebanon.

Politics in Lebanon and Syria are closely connected

Mr Samaha, who is in custody, is accused of plotting a campaign of bombings and assassinations to spread sectarian violence in Lebanon at Syria's behest.

Also indicted in the August sweep was Syrian Brigadier General Ali Mamlouk, one of Mr Assad's highest aides.

Dozens were left wounded in the blast in Beirut's mainly Christian Achrafieh neighbourhood.

Lebanon's fractious politics are closely entwined with Syria's.

The countries share political and sectarian ties and rivalries, often causing events on one side of the border to have a "knock on" effect on the other.

Lebanon's opposition is an anti-Syrian bloc, while the prime minister and much of the government are pro-Syrian.

The civil war in Syria has laid bare Lebanon's sectarian tensions as well.

Many of Lebanon's Sunni Muslims have backed Syria's mainly Sunni rebels, while Shi'ite Muslims have tended to back Mr Assad.

Brig-Gen al Hassan was a Sunni whose stances were widely seen to oppose Syria and Shi'ite Hezbollah, the country's most powerful ally in Lebanon.

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