Hezbollah Stages Strike In Lebanon, Clashes Break Out

And, so it begins? Is this the subtle beginning of the summer of the end of Lebanon? Hard to say but it certainly looks more and more like a planned first step in the process of Syrian and Iranian-backed Hezbollah trying to take over Lebanon. Here's some info from the article over at Breitbart:

Protesters from the Hezbollah-led opposition clashed with supporters of Lebanon's U.S.-backed government Wednesday as a strike by the Shiite militant group paralyzed large parts of the capital Beirut.
The violence deepened tensions in a country already mired in a 17- month-old political crisis pitting the Iranian- and Syrian-backed Hezbollah against the government of Prime Minister Fuad Saniora. The troubles have left the country without a president since November.
The strike was called by labor unions after they rejected a last- minute pay raise offer by the government as insufficient. But instead it turned into a showdown between Hezbollah and the government.

Now, this is only conjecture on my part here, but I think we will see outbreaks like this of violence across Lebanon for weeks as Hezbollah tries to gauge the degree of reaction by the Lebanese government and army. If Hezbollah determines that the Lebanese Army is guarded, that they want to avoid any conflict, that should emolden them forward into taking some plots of ground and accelerate them towards what will no doubt be a takeover attempt of the country. Don't be fooled, Iran wants to control a border with Israel.

Clashes erupt in Lebanon as Hezbollah stages strike

The clashes began when government and opposition supporters in a Muslim sector of Beirut exchanged insults and began throwing stones at each other. Witnesses said security forces intervened and gunshots were heard, apparently troops firing in the air to disperse the crowds.
A cameraman for Hezbollah's Al-Manar television station was hit by a stone in the forehead, the state-run National News Agency reported. A soldier also was hit in the mouth by a stone.
Earlier in the same area, a stun grenade thrown into a crowd lightly injured three protesters and two soldiers, the agency said. It was not immediately clear who threw the stun grenade.
Around the city, protesters blocked roads with burning tires, dirt, old cars and garbage cans to protest against government economic policies and demand pay raises.
The protests and labor strike paralyzed Beirut international airport. Airport employees stopped working for six hours while opposition protesters blocked roads to the country's only air facility leading to the cancellation or delay of 19 incoming and 13 outgoing flights.
The unrest and roadblocks forced labor unions to cancel the main public demonstration planned to coincide with the strike.