Friday’s tragic bomb incident in Beirut is
a sad reminder of Lebanon’s increasing vulnerability to the ongoing crisis in
neighboring Syria. The murder of Wissam al-Hassan, head of the intelligence
branch of the Internal Security Forces and outspoken critic of the Syrian
regime, triggered a wave of fear throughout the country that had been
relatively stable since 2008.
Soon after the explosion, the two main
political coalitions, the anti-Syrian March 14 and pro-Syrian March 8, immediately
began accusing one another, inciting sectarian tension in a country that is already
hanging on a thread.
It must be said that behind this agitated
and irresponsible political discourse, the real victims of Friday’s incident
were quickly forgotten by our politicians: residents of Achrafieh (the
neighborhood that was targeted) whose homes were completely destroyed and loved
ones injured by the blast, employees of the banks and shops located on the street
where the bomb was triggered, university students who were walking by looking
forward to yet another weekend with friends and family… they were the immediate
victims, and yet their injuries and losses were immediately sold out for yet
another day of rage and political accusations.
It was not surprising that the first to
respond to the victims’ needs was the active network of Lebanese NGOs,
including blood donation NGOs, crisis response groups and women’s rights organizations.
Hotels in the area immediately opened their doors to the victims of the blast, Facebook
and Twitter were also flooded by messages from young men and women declaring
their houses open for those who did not have a place to stay for the night. It
was not long before Nasawiya, a collective of feminists working on gender
justice in Lebanon, also began to collect water, food and clothes for the
families who had lost everything.
These young men and women are solid proof
that this vicious plot designed to pit us against one another was not
successful among a great number of people. Many of us young Lebanese are tired
of the same political and religious discourse based on sectarian hate and
mistrust, and are ready to build a new national identity rooted in tolerance, peace
and stability.
Last but not least, this quick and selfless
response to the bombing is also a reminder that women are not only capable of
preventing conflict and restoring peace, they are also often the first ones to
react in times of crisis, by setting politics and religion aside, and providing
relief to all victims of violence on a much-needed ‘human’ footing.
- Evita Mouawad
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