Beirutis on Edge Over Sectarian Tensions

Old Beirutis, who have long called the capital city their home, long for the olden days when it did not matter to which sect their neighbors belonged. They have recently seen renewed tensions and fighting — either on the streets or on television — between Sunni and Shiite groups. This article will report on the impressions and testimonies of Beirutis in the aftermath of the sectarian and political incidents that took place last Sunday.

Hanaa al-Jaq, a journalist and writer for Lebanese, Arab and international newspapers and a former member of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s media team, said to Al-Monitor: “This is not the same Beirut I knew and grew up in. I have lived my whole life in the Barbur neighborhood. Inevitably, many Christians fled the area back in the days of the civil war, amid the deep rifts that marked our country during that dark era. When the dust of war settled, however, we reunited again. The Lebanese people are good-hearted in general and do not harbor grudges.

“During the period of reconstruction and reconsolidation of trust, led by the late Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, we restored to a certain extent the old essence of Beirut. During my childhood and adolescence, the topic of religions and sects was never discussed. The residents of various neighborhoods coexisted peacefully,” she added.

Things have changed dramatically these days. Jaq, a Shiite woman who married a Sunni, notes that her Sunni daughter has married a Shiite. “Beirutis are characterized by openness. However, over the past few years, tensions have become heightened, particularly following Hariri’s assassination in 2005.” In this regard, Jaq blames Hezbollah, which works according to Iran’s sectarian agenda. She despondently recalls “the passive, introverted reactions — not talking or dealing openly with people belonging to another sect has become a frequent occurrence in Beirut’s mixed neighborhoods, as a result of an uncharacteristic wave of sectarian intolerance.”