Commemoration of February 5, 2006

A ceremony was held in Achrafieh on Saturday to commemorate the memory of February 5, 2006.       

During the ceremony, Massoud al-Achkar voiced his surprise at the accusations directed at the Lebanese Armed Forces every time they try to arrest an extremist. “I believe in coexistence,” he said calling on his partners in the nation to stand in the way of extremists.    

The Free Patriotic Movement leader considered that if those behind the 2006 incidents were punished, Nahr el-Bared incidents wouldn’t have happened, adding “I preferred if money was spent on universities to keep the Lebanese away from Takfeerism.”

In turn, Minister of Telecommunications Nicolas Sehnaoui stressed that Sunnis have no relation to the attack on Achrafieh, adding that his hand is extended to all Lebanese.

Sehnaoui conveyed a message to his colleagues to meet him at Parliament and vote on a fair law which would grant Christians 64 MPs.

On February 5, 2006, in the aftermath of the publication of controversial cartoons in Europe, a crowd of several thousand predominantly Sunni protestors staged a demonstration outside the Danish consulate, situated in the mainly Christian neighborhood of Achrafieh in east Beirut. The demonstration turned violent when protestors attempted to burn down the building housing the consulate and also attacked the St. Maroun (Maronite) and St. Nicholas (Greek Orthodox) churches, causing slight material damage. Authorities arrested 441 persons, mostly for damage to the diplomatic facility.