BEIRUT — Their bodies and psyches still etched with the wounds of Lebanon's civil war, the people of Beirut shepherded their former prime minister's body through the capital's bullet-scarred streets Wednesday in a funeral march that turned into a protest against Syria.
The day began with somber prayers over the body of Rafik Hariri but gave way to a jostling outpouring of religious fervor and nationalistic rage as at least 150,000 mourners crammed the streets. They yelled until they were hoarse, mixing Islamic incantations with anti-Syria slogans.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Friday February 18, 2005 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 37 words Type of Material: Correction
Lebanese flag -- An article in Thursday's Section A about the funeral of Lebanon's former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri said the nation's flag includes an image of a cypress tree. It is an image of a cedar.
Although it is unclear who was responsible for the car bombing that killed Hariri and 14 others Monday, many here blame their neighbor to the east. Syria sent troops into Lebanon shortly after the civil war began in 1975 and maintains de facto control over the country.
In the stunned nation, Hariri's slaying has increased demands that Syria withdraw its 16,000 soldiers and agents. Hariri had resigned in October amid the growing political debate over the issue.
Hariri's family shunned Lebanon's offer of a state funeral, opting instead for a groundswell of civic grief.
President Emile Lahoud and other prominent Lebanese officials closely affiliated with Syria stayed away, heeding the warnings of the family.
Hariri, a Sunni Muslim who had served as prime minister for 10 of the last 15 years, is credited with restoring Beirut's city center after it was ravaged by war. A politically moderate construction magnate, he soothed the nation with promises to return Lebanon to splendor, heal its scars and get business booming again.
Now his death has spawned fears of renewed upheaval and economic downfall.
"I am afraid of so many things," said Raifa Dahar, a 42-year-old schoolteacher who muttered prayers as Hariri's coffin passed.
"I'm afraid of war, of sectarianism. That these things may resurface."
"The people are scared, because Hariri was a symbol of unity," said former Finance Minister Fuad Siniora, one of Hariri's closest political allies.
The 60-year-old former prime minister was buried in the unfinished limestone mosque he had been building in the city's seaside center, where the scars of the 1975-90 war have been masked by a facade of posh shops, sidewalk cafes and sparkling office buildings.
Assistant U.S. Secretary of State William J. Burns represented America at the funeral. French President Jacques Chirac arrived after the services and disappeared behind closed doors to mourn with Hariri's family.
