Lebanon: Terrorist Attack in Tripoli – II · Global Voices
Moussa Bashir

The terrorist attack that took place in Tripoli, Lebanon, is the most fatal since the assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Al Hariri in February 2005. The place and the target of the attack are of serious implications and may have grave consequences on Lebanon as a whole. This may be one of the reasons why the media and the blogosphere is giving it so much coverage. Following are more comments and analysis from the Lebanese blogosphere:
Cedar–Guardian, at Lebanese Political Journal, begins a lengthy analysis of the sectarian aspects of the strife and the different regional interference in Lebanon with the story of one of the casualties: an eight-year-old child who frequented the bustling bus station to shine shoes for living:
He’s only 8 years old. He does not go to school. Despite his very early age, he works, all day long, giving a shine to the Tripolitan businessmen’s shoes, and injecting hope into his daily struggle to assist his family financially. He is one of many similar poor children in the streets of the capital of North Lebanon; but now he is unique, different.. He died today.. not because of an ever threatening hunger, but because he was killed in one of the harshest Baghdad-style explosions in the history of Tripoli.
EDB at Anecdotes from a Banana Republic asks why the death of one politician may get three days of mourning while the death of 14 people gets one hour of national mourning only:
Yesterday morning, 14 people were killed and a further 35 wounded in a bus bombing in downtown Tripoli. In response, Prime Minister Saniora called for “one hour” of mourning today. What happened to the three-day mourning period for every two-bit politician?
In case you harbored any doubts about the heart-felt priorities of the national power-hording clique, one “elite martyr” receives (1 x 14 x 24h x 3 days = ) 1,008 times the mourning period of your average, hapless, public-transportation-dependent citizen.
Tantalus is back with sarcasm at I Hate Lebanon to criticize the amount of statements that are made every time an explosion occurs as if those making the statements are behind the explosions:
Sometimes I think the explosions are conducted in cooperation by all the political powers in Lebanon. The only clue is that when something explodes, every motherf***** in the country comes out with a statement.
“Guys, it's been a while we haven't said a thing. Can we blow something up and come out with some statements?”
“Yalla [Come on], let's do it.”
“ok.”
Lebanese Tag posted a video showing (disturbing) first images right after the blast as well as this analysis which states that:
The bombing was most likely the work of Saudi-backed Salafist militants, who are trying to resist a coming Syrian-backed crackdown against them. As the crackdown intensifies, the Salafists will likely ratchet up their attacks — and tensions will rise between Damascus and Riyadh.
Also on Global Voices Online:
Lebanon: Terrorist attack in Tripoli
Lebanon: Tripoli's Attack – More Online Reactions