Beirut's Shiite bastion revives after 2006 war

[Dry Ice]

(note: title reproduced as is)

Suburb forgotten by lebanon rebuilds itself

Saturday, October 24, 2009
Hamza Hendawi
Associated Press


BEIRUT: The sprawling Shiite suburb of south Beirut has made a comeback after the destruction wreaked by Israel during 2006 fighting, a symbol of the community’s resilience at a time when its political patron, Hizbullah, is seeking a greater voice in Lebanon’s government.

The district, called simply Dahiyeh – meaning “the suburb” in Arabic – is the stronghold of Hizbullah, and was heavily targeted by Israel during its war with the militant Shiite group three years ago. The bombardment leveled Hizbullah’s headquarters as well as entire blocks across the neighborhood.

Now dozens of newly built or repaired apartment blocks stand in place of those destroyed, the result of a reconstruction program led by Hizbullah, which receives millions of dollars a year in aid from its ally Iran.

Property prices are soaring. The district’s main streets are congested bumper-to-bumper with cars, while uniformed Hizbullah members direct traffic. Commerce is thriving, restaurants are packed.

“Dahiyeh will be more beautiful than it was before,” read billboards at the construction sites that remain.

Beyond the district’s ties to Hizbullah, Dahiyeh is a source of pride for Lebanon’s Shiites. For them, it exemplifies how the community has shaken off years of discrimination at the hands of the country’s traditional powerbrokers – Christians and Sunni Muslims – and has established itself as a powerful political force.

Literally, Dahiyeh brought Shiites closer to the center of power: It grew from nearly nothing over 30 years to become a densely packed region of apartment towers and homes for 700,000 Shiites on the southern doorstep of Beirut, historically a mainly Christian and Sunni city with only a tiny Shiite presence.

“In Beirut, people are arrogant and think the world of themselves,” said Nagat Gradah, a bookstore employee in the district who, like many of its residents, migrated from Lebanon’s mainly Shiite south. “But Dahiyeh? It’s very special.”

Dahiyeh’s revival comes as the March 8 group is seeking to bolster its credentials as a mainstream political power.

For months, it has been in negotiations with Sunni-led Western-backed parties over the creation of a new government, in which Hizbullah and its allies would have a sizable role. The negotiations have been deadlocked, however, in a dispute over who will get which positions, fueled by suspicions in the pro-Western bloc that Hizbullah and its allies will seek to impose Syria’s and Iran’s agenda in the deeply divided nation.

Hizbullah is strongly backed by Syria and Iran, and it touts a powerful armed guerrilla force. But the movement also runs an extensive social welfare network and is the main political representative for Lebanon’s Shiites, who make up about a third of the country’s population of 4 million.

Dahiyeh itself may be a sign that Shiite power is not necessarily an omen of Lebanon’s “Iranization” as Hizbullah’s opponents fear.

Despite its undisputed lock over Dahiyeh, Hizbullah has not tried to enforce its strict interpretation of Islamic teachings in the district, a show of pragmatism perhaps aimed at casting doubt on the extremist tag critics slap on the group and increasing its appeal to secular Shiites and other sectarian groups.

Billboards advertising women’s couture compete for space with billboards of bearded clerics and images of the young Hizbullah guerrillas who died fighting Israel over the years.

Women in tight pants and low-cut tops shop at boutiques with names like “Pascale” and “La Verna” where bikinis, miniskirts and hot shorts are on display in windows – much like in the more liberal districts of Beirut.

“Here in Dahiyeh, we have managed to have resistance, freedom and fashion all at the same place,” said Hussein al-Zein, a 40-year-old resident who runs a women’s casual wear store.

“People think Lebanon is either about fighting Israel or whoring with nothing in between. In Dahiyeh, we have freedom, but it has boundaries,” he said at his store.

That said, the majority of women in Dahiyeh dress conservatively in Islamic headscarves in public. There are no bars or liquor stores and certainly no nightclubs.

European non-alcoholic beer ads in the streets don’t mention the word “beer,” using instead the term “barley drink.”

Hanein Estiatieh, a graphic design student, says she has no worries about going out in jeans and a tight top in Dahiyeh, her birthplace.

“I will cover up only when I marry,” declares the 18-year-old.

“I don’t mind her not covering up,”said Aliyah Sohoura, daughter of the owner of the women’s clothes store where Estiatieh works. “But I pray for her to see the light of faith,” added Sohoura, who wore a headscarf and a bulky coat.

Dahiyeh was not always a Shiite stronghold. It was once an area of small villages south of Beirut that were home to Christians and some middle-class Shiites.

During Lebanon’s Civil War, tens of thousands of Shiites poured into the area from the impoverished, more rural south and east to flee fighting. The Christians largely moved out, though pockets remain.

Beirut itself is sharply divided between Sunni and Christian districts, with very few mixed areas. In the 2006 war, Israel almost exclusively targeted Dahiyeh and Shiite areas in the south and east, while largely steering clear of Sunni and Christian regions – which in turn fed distrust between the sects.

In May last year, sectarian tensions turned violent when Hizbullah fighters clashed with Sunni rivals, briefly seizing Sunni districts at the height of a political dispute with the US-backed government.

Fistfights and stone-throwing have since broken out occasionally between youths from Dahiyeh and adjacent Sunni districts. Shiites’ sense of solidarity in Dahiyeh is reinforced by what residents see as neglect from the central government.

The district gets only 12 hours of city electricity a day, compared to 19 in Beirut. Authorities blame large-scale power theft in Dahiyeh, while residents call it discrimination.

Shiite group Hizbullah handles security in the district, managing traffic and even handling crime cases like drug offenses.

However, the group says it has no choice, saying central authorities ignore the area.

“We don’t try to be a substitute for the state but we just try and come up with solutions,” said Hizbullah official Ghassan Darwish. “We cannot replace the government, even if we tried.”

[hannaalsayssa]

DAHYIEH SHAWKET be 3ein al ghouzat.

i am happy that BEIRUT IS FOR ALL..thats the way any capital in the world should be.

[joseph_lubnan]

The burgeoning capital of Hezbollahstan.

[Abou Sandal]

Dahieh has always been targeted and many times destroyed over the years, yet it keeps rising up, stronger than before. Dahieh is a very resilient city because its people are so much attached to it. No one can destroy a place, village, city, country as long as their people are attached to them and always ready to make sacrifices to get back to them, and rebuild them, no matter what.

[Abou Sandal]

Originally Posted by joseph_lubnan

The burgeoning capital of Hezbollahstan.

The post of Hanna, right before yours is the most adequate reply to what you said here.

[kappa273]

"Property prices are soaring. The district’s main streets are congested bumper-to-bumper with cars, while uniformed Hizbullah members direct traffic. Commerce is thriving, restaurants are packed."

any comments here?

do they consider Darak as HA members?

or the writer is trying to insinuate some messages in his article..

kappa

[hiptanaka]

Originally Posted by joseph_lubnan

The burgeoning capital of Hezbollahstan.

As if you've been there.

[Dry Ice]

kappa,

it's well known that indibat members from hezbollah direct traffic in a number of areas in dahieh..

Originally Posted by kappa273

"Property prices are soaring. The district’s main streets are congested bumper-to-bumper with cars, while uniformed Hizbullah members direct traffic. Commerce is thriving, restaurants are packed."

any comments here?

do they consider Darak as HA members?

or the writer is trying to insinuate some messages in his article..

kappa

[BEAST]

Originally Posted by Dry Ice

kappa,

it's well known that indibat members from hezbollah direct traffic in a number of areas in dahieh..

Ummm....no they don't :)

[Zayn]

Originally Posted by BEAST

Ummm....no they don't :)

Yes they do. I have seen these men directing traffic with my own eyes. They are clean-shaven, well-dressed, and do a very good job in directing traffic.