Return to Transcripts main page

Your World Today

Rival Factions Face Off at Beirut University Campus; Fiercest Combat Simmering Around Haifa Street in Baghdad; Blunt Talk, Promises of a Security Crackdown in Iraq

Aired January 25, 2007 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Clashes in Beirut. Pro and anti-government students at a university fight over the future of Lebanon.
CLANCY: Battling Baghdad. U.S. and Iraqi soldiers facing off with insurgents in a violent part of the Iraqi capital.

GORANI: Murder and 13,000 feet? Belgian police suspect foul play in the death of an experienced sky diver.

CLANCY: And the power of faith. Nearly 60 million faithful gather in northern India for a dip in a holy river to cleanse the soul.

BLITZER: It is 7:00 p.m. in Beirut, Lebanon; 8:00 p.m. in Baghdad, Iraq.

Hello and welcome to our report broadcast the globe.

I'm Hala Gorani.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy.

From Brussels to Allahabad, wherever you're watching, this is YOUR WORLD TODAY.

Fiery rhetoric and flaming barricades push Lebanon closer to the brink.

CLANCY: As rival factions there turn a university campus into a virtual battleground.

GORANI: Well, it was just hours after donors pledged billions to rebuild the battered country.

CLANCY: Now, right now the fighting is contained around that university, but its sectarian and political roots raising a lot of concerns this day. And it is not over.

GORANI: Well, many of those fighting in the streets are too young to remember Lebanon's disastrous civil war, a war that destroyed the country and cost more than 150,000 lives.

Senior International Nic Robertson is watching developments and joins us now with details on what he saw and what happened today at Beirut University -- Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Hala, let me also tell our viewers what's happening right now.

Behind me is -- or has been a peaceful demonstration by the Hezbollah-led opposition here around the prime minister's offices that are just around the corner from this building behind me. Just a couple of minutes ago, about 20, 30, 40, perhaps, people rushed from this camp here to a barricade that's been set up around the prime minister's office, broke through that barricade. And I saw them go into the area around the prime minister's building, begin to throw bags into the streets. And right now, I can hear what sounds like windows being broken from where they've -- where they've gone through the barricade.

It is a relatively small crowd. This demonstration here had been relatively peaceful, but quite literally, this is a developing situation.

The crowd, this Hezbollah-called rally here that's been in place for 55 days, until now peaceful. I can hear the sounds of smashing glass from where they've broken through the barricades around the corner.

The anger at the university, a little area, really erupted in the late afternoon. It's not clear exactly what sparked it.

Angry, young men were throwing rocks at each other, they were armed with big wooden clubs. They were from pro and anti-government factions. It's not clear exactly who they were aligned with, but the anger and the tension was very, very clear.

At one point somebody lit a Hezbollah flag, something that you don't do lightly here in Lebanon, which is light, and set on fire the flag of -- anyone's flag here. The army, the Lebanese army, came in to calm down the situation. The Amy was firing in the air multiple volleys from automatic weapons for several hours.

I left that area about a half an hour ago. There were still some rounds being fired to calm the situation.

A huge plume of black smoke was billowing up from the university by fires set by these young men. The fire trucks eventually got in, put out those burning fires, but the tensions and the violence there very troubling this evening for the people of Beirut.

The streets deserted. Groups of young men setting up impromptu barricades and burning fires on those streets. A lot of vehicles set on fire.

But intense anger being shown at the university. And the army quite literally forming a thin line between the two sides. As we left about a half an hour ago, the situation behind me, that does appear, this demonstration, to be a developing situation -- Hala.

GORANI: All right. And we'll keep following it. Nic Robertson, thanks very much.

And now for one of the major players in Lebanon, here's Jim.

CLANCY: All right. Ahmad Fatfah, the interior minister of Lebanon, joins us now on the line from the capital city of Beirut.

Thank you for being with us. I know this is a difficult time, Mr. Minister.

What can you tell us? What is the situation there in government House, where the prime minister has his offices?

AHMAD FATFAT, LEBANESE MINISTER, YOUTH AND SPORTS: First, I am minister of Youth and Sports now. I was minister of the interior by interim. Now I am minister of Youth and Sports.

I am in the office of the prime minister now. Everything is very calm here, is under control.

I don't know what -- about what Mr. Nic was speaking. I'm in the office of the prime minister, it is very calm now here.

CLANCY: All right. Well, he was talking about coming across the street there from where that tent city has been erected by supporters of Hezbollah and their Christian allies, and coming towards the offices there. That was my understanding in listening to his report.

And he was watching them rush around and heard the sound of broken glass. They may be someplace else in that general area.

How is the university campus?

FATFAT: Yes, the university campus also and what you call the Arabic university, also the situation is better now. The Lebanese force, what -- the army is controlling now the situation.

CLANCY: All right. They are controlling the situation, but we saw the videotape from earlier that indicated that they really weren't so much intervening between the two sides as just trying to keep them apart.

FATFAT: No. They tried to control the situation with using as they can less force, because they don't want to -- the situation to go worse. That's why (INAUDIBLE). But now everything is under control.

CLANCY: All right. As we look at some of the wanton destruction here, is there any clear indication who is behind it?

FATFAT: No. Let's see -- let's say -- tomorrow morning, maybe we can have more information about this.

CLANCY: Well, obviously supporters of the government are saying that it's Hezbollah that's doing it, or their Christian allies that are doing it, while we are hearing other reports from Al-Manar television. They're blaming the government. FATFAT: In this zone, there is no Christian allies (ph). In this zone there is no Christian allies (ph). It is Hezbollah who is there, who is controlling the flow of (INAUDIBLE) in this -- in this zone. It is not the Christians.

CLANCY: How effective do you see the Lebanese army in all of this?

FATFAT: I think that the thing will go better in two hours. And now the Lebanese army has control, has taken control of the situation until one hour ago.

CLANCY: Now, donors are offering Lebanon aid and loans that amount to $7.6 billion to try to rebuild the country after last year's disastrous war.

FATFAT: Yes.

CLANCY: But how can any of that be done in this atmosphere? And what's the government going to be able to do to turn this situation around?

FATFAT: I think that what happened today is maybe because of the help of the international community to Lebanon. Someone somewhere didn't look to this aid, to this help in good eyes. So it is a political decision.

Now we have the help of -- a large help -- help of the international community, and I am sure that the Lebanese government can use this help to reconstruct and to rebuild the economy. And the opposition has always (INAUDIBLE) if they want to work with the government, but if they want to make -- criticize, it's not possible.

CLANCY: All right, Ahmad Fatfat, cabinet minister there in Beirut, Lebanon, talking to us from the prime minister's office, or very close to it.

I want to thank you very much for taking the time to explain some of the situation from your viewpoint.

Now, we want to remind our viewers right now that the Hezbollah chief, Hassan Nasrallah, is speaking on television in Lebanon. As soon as we get -- as soon as we get a translation of this, we're going to try to bring you some of his comments.

But he is making perhaps an appeal for his supporters to pull back on the streets. Other people had also appealed for calm on this day, hoping that the young people of Lebanon will not make this situation any worse. The fires that are burning around Arabic University in Beirut, a reminder to many in the country of the 15- year-long civil war there.

All right. We'll have continuing coverage -- Hala.

GORANI: Absolutely. And also reports coming out there from The Associated Press that the Lebanese army is imposing a nighttime curfew there in an effort to quell the violence. We're going to speak with the finance minister of Lebanon, Jihad Azour, who's in Paris right now for that donor's conference.

Moving on though to another story, was it a plot foiled by special agents from Georgia or was it staged by Georgia to embarrass its Russian neighbor? This is what's known so far.

A Russian man is in a Georgia jail after being found guilty of trying to sell a small amount of weapons-grade uranium last year. A U.S. government spokesman says the CIA and FBI took part in the sting operation at the Republic of Georgia's request. He says there wasn't enough uranium to make a bomb.

So far, Russian officials have said little about the incident. Moscow has said that the uranium sample it was given by Georgia was too small to determine its point of origin. It also denies charges that it's refused to cooperate with Georgian investigators.

All right. Turning our attention now to Iraq, where the prime minister says a new security plan for Baghdad will hunt down militants of all kinds no matter who they are and where they might hide.

CLANCY: His remark coming, of course, as both the Iraqi and the U.S. vice presidents are speaking out about the war, one calling the invasion an idiot decision and the other the right move.

GORANI: Well first, more on Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's pledge that there will be no safe havens for insurgents, including homes, schools, and mosques. That's the promise, at least. He says troops will sweep Baghdad for Sunni and Shia militants when the long- promised security crackdown actually begins.

Insurgents fired mortars and set off bombs in several parts of the capital Thursday, sending thick, black smoke into the skies. The worst attack was a suicide car bombing in a busy commercial district that killed at least 20 people -- Jim.

CLANCY: All right. Some of the fiercest combat in Baghdad recently simmering around Haifa Street. That's a main artery that is a stronghold and has been for Sunni insurgents.

Arwa Damon accompanied U.S. and Iraqi forces on a mission there and wound up right in the midst of battle.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This is where the battle for Baghdad was fought, out of apartments and high-rise buildings that line this major Baghdad thoroughfare.

Listen carefully as the U.S. troops spot an Iraqi insurgent in a nearby building. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right over here. You can see the corner of a building, sunlight? Right? They're running between there and that blue door. See, there they go.

DAMON: The insurgents are so close, the Americans can see them without binoculars.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There you go. There you go.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's the money maker right there.

DAMON: That material was shot by a Pentagon camera crew. At another building nearby, we had a different vantage point.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, coming up.

DAMON: We arrived on this rooftop near Baghdad's Haifa Street seven hours into the battle. The American troops, side by side with their Iraqi counterparts, are being fired at from one of those high- rises in the foreground.

American Apache helicopters circle the building repeatedly to try to get a clear shot at the insurgents inside, but they can't, so the target building's coordinates are radioed to a site far from Haifa Street, and that's when it happened. A precision-guided U.S. missile, fired from a site unseen, levels the building where the insurgents were holed up.

As soon as the building falls, the insurgent guns go virtually silent. Just the occasional shot here and there. It's a reminder that the Iraqi army still needs the United States military.

Colonel Hassan Fallah (ph) served in Saddam Hussein's army. "The terrorists are better armed than we are," the brigade commander says, "so we want the Americans to support us, especially for the tougher targets."

On this day, Iraqi troops who had been fighting below bring in two insurgents wounded in a gun battle. "One of these men threw a grenade off a roof top at us," this soldier says. "The other was firing with a machine gun."

The wounded insurgents are put into an Iraq ambulance and driven away.

(on camera): Across the river from Haifa Street, another stryker battalion is also fighting alongside Iraqi forces in yet another Sunni stronghold. The aim there, as it is here, to disrupt the insurgency, so that eventually other troops can come in to clear, hold and rebuild.

(voice over): Some of the stryker armored vehicles leave. Some of them stay to help Iraqi troops hold the ground for another day. Only moments after this day's gun battle ends, the civilians who remain in the area begin emerging just before the sunset. That is live on Haifa Street.

Arwa Damon, CNN, on Haifa Street in Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: All right. We want to go back to Lebanon now and update you on the situation there.

The Lebanese army has declared an 8:30 p.m. -- that would be effective immediately -- until 6:00 a.m. Friday curfew, trying to get people off of the streets. Now, that was a messages, that was an order that was really parroted by the leader, Hassan Nasrallah, of Hezbollah. He delivered a message via Al-Manar television, telling his supporters to go home and get off the streets.

A lot of people seriously concerned about a day of violence that's left at least three people dead, many, many more injured, as clashes erupted on -- at Arab University in Beirut, the capital city. You're looking at a live picture here.

The curfew set to go in effect immediately. Hopefully most of these people, if they've heard about this curfew that was just announced, they are heading to their homes as officials try to calm the situation.

We're going to keep you up to date on that, but we're going to have to take a short break. There's much more ahead right here on YOUR WORLD TODAY.

GORANI: All right.

Coming up, you've heard the talk about Iraq cracking down on the militias. How serious is it? We'll take a closer look in a moment.

CLANCY: And the planes, well, they're moving now, but they may not be next week. British Airways already warning thousands of passengers, be prepared.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: Welcome back, everyone, to CNN International and YOUR WORLD TODAY.

CLANCY: We're bringing you, our viewers around the globe, up to speed on the most important international stories of the day.

GORANI: And one of those today, our top story, simmering tensions over Lebanon's political future boiling over. On a Beirut university campus earlier, rival factions, among them Shia and Sunni, facing off with stones and clubs and setting fire to tires.

The Lebanese army has declared a curfew in Beirut. There are reports of at least four people killed. We'll continue to follow the story with our reporters live in the Lebanese capital. These are live pictures, but for now, Jim, back to you.

CLANCY: All right. We're going to switch over to Iraq. There has been a blunt exchange, if you will, of conversation coming from both the Iraqi and U.S. vice presidents about the war. Well, the prime minister is asking his country to support a crackdown on insurgents.

For some perspective on all of this, let's go to Adnan Pachachi. He's a member of the Iraqi National Assembly. He joins us from Davos, Switzerland, considered by many to be the elder statesman of Iraq.

There's been so much debate, Mr. Pachachi, about President Bush's plan. But there is no other plan out there.

What is your outlook on this, putting in more troops into Baghdad, trying to do a security clampdown on both the Sunni and the Shia militants?

ADNAN PACHACHI, MEMBER, IRAQI NATIONAL ASSEMBLY: Well, you know, the main problem, Jim, in Iraq is, of course, the question of security. And unfortunately, the Iraqi forces, security forces and the armed forces, have been heavily infiltrated by the militias and the other armed groups who they are supposed to fight. And therefore, the government cannot really rely on these forces to do the job of cleaning up the militias and other illegal armed groups.

That's why the only force available in Iraq is really that of the multinational forces.

CLANCY: But will this...

PACHACHI: Which means the United States, of course.

CLANCY: Will this plan alone then solve that problem? You seem to be saying that you have to rebuild almost in their entirety Iraq's security forces.

PACHACHI: Well, we have to -- first of all, we have to clean up the -- these forces from the influence of the militias. And then secondly, we have to reorganize them so that they can be reliable and then they will not have divided loyalty.

They should have undivided loyalty to the state, allegiance to the state, and not to their sect or their political party. Otherwise, you'll never be able to do the job.

CLANCY: Well, as you well know, the American public is frustrated by the situation in Iraq, perhaps just as much as your own vice president, a Shia. Adel Abdul-Mahdi saying Thursday right there in Davos that the decision to occupy Iraq after toppling Saddam Hussein, to put it under occupation, which "was an idiot decision," a direct quote of the vice president.

Do you think that the U.S. -- that this is where the error lay?

PACHACHI: No, I think probably what he meant is that after the invasion, a Security Council roes resolution was adopted on the 22nd of May, 2003, considering these forces, the coalition forces in Iraq as occupation forces, in accordance with the Geneva Conventions. Which, of course, meant that the country became occupied territory, and administered as such by the occupying forces.

I think this is what he thought was wrong, and I agree with him. I think -- I believe the reason why the occupation -- or the invading forces were considered occupying forces is because, you know, to give legitimacy to the presence of these foreign forces, because the United Nations Security Council did not give its approval to the military intervention in Iraq.

CLANCY: Well, you know, and the reasons have got to go a lot deeper than that. It can't just be a piece of paper, a U.N. resolution, because as you well know, on the streets of Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq, that's not going to have much credence. What did have a lot of credence, you sat down, you invited to dinner in your home Iraqi generals very early on in this whole affair and tried to talk them into supporting a new Iraq.

Is it time to go back and bring the parties back to a table, all of the Iraqis, all of the factions, and come to some national reconciliation?

PACHACHI: Well, I think we have to do that. We have to do that, but it may take some time.

What is urgent really is to confront the militias and the illegal armed groups, because they are the ones who are responsible for the total chaos that is going on in Iraq at present. And then reconciliation, the reorganization of the armed forces, of course, these things will take time.

CLANCY: All right.

PACHACHI: And unfortunately, we don't have forces enough to do the job, and that's why the multinational forces are required to really bear the brunt of the -- of the -- of the thing.

CLANCY: All right.

Adnan Pachachi, a member of the Iraqi National Assembly.

I want to thank you for being with us there from Davos and sharing with us some of your insights into what's happening today on the ground in Iraq -- Hala.

PACHACHI: Thank you.

GORANI: Well, we're going to have a lot more here on YOUR WORLD TODAY, and also the latest from Lebanon, where, despite the fact that the Lebanese army has called for a curfew that is due to start at 8:30 p.m. local, which would be an hour from now, well, apparently there's a balcony on fire on that street of Beirut University.

We'll bring you a lot more on that situation and the rest of the global news headlines after a short break on CNN.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

CLANCY: Fouad Siniora and, especially, Saad Hariri, the son of the former -- the assassinated prime minister of Lebanon -- this rivalry between these two factions has only intensified and is probably fueling some of the tensions on the streets. There's little doubt about that.

Hezbollah, in setting up this confrontation with the government and demanding that the government, without an election, go ahead and realign things, has set the stage here. And I think that's one of the reasons why they're being cautious and backing away, because they fear they could be blamed for all of this.

GORANI: And we're getting information that what you're seeing there on fire on your screens -- and welcome back to our viewers across North America as well -- is the Syrian National Party Center. So, of course, a pro-Syrian political party. And just to remind our viewers, the confrontation occurring and developing now in Lebanon is between pro and anti-Syrian forces.

Of course, this is simple way of looking at things. There are many more nuances in Lebanese politics. But if you want a simple explanation as to the opposing forces in Lebanon right now, those are the ones, those who would like more Syrian influence. Hezbollah, backed by Iran and Syria on the one hand with Christian ally Michelle Aounan (ph). On the other hand the pro-Hariri, mainly Sunni bloc with their Christian allies, as well, who are opposed to Syrian influence.

CLANCY: All right. As Beirut burns, the questions are being asked, the blame is being traded, and people are wondering when will the rebuilding get under way.

Even us, looking at this destruction -- this was supposed to be a week that brought a little bit of hope for the people of Lebanon, that pledge of $7.6 billion at an international donor's conference today in Paris being looked on all across the country, despite hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars poured in by Iran.

Despite the pledges by the government, the reconstruction of large areas of the south just simply has not gone forward. They're blaming the government for inaction. Others are blaming Hezbollah. And both sides are said to be, you know, complacent, that neither one is doing anything, because then they can continue to trade this blame as they try to battle out the political power. And this is the whole confrontation that we see in Lebanon today.

GORANI: It's not just political, it's economic as well. The economic impact of what happened over the summer, the Hezbollah-Israel war and the last few months of demonstrations and the near paralysis that the Hezbollah-led demonstrations have caused to the country of Lebanon are really taking a toll on major industries in Lebanon that that country needs to rely on in order to keep its citizens employed, but also in order to generate money to rebuild. And those are tourism and banking. And those two industries have been very much affected.

CLANCY: Very hard-hit. And you have to remember that in the tourism sector, many of the Shia, the supporters of Hezbollah, have lost their jobs. People all across the country have lost their jobs, among all of the religious communities of Lebanon. But once again, it's the political power, who is in control, what is the future direction of the country. This is what's at stake. And the two sides starting a confrontation on the streets -- young people, students swept up in the passions, have taken it to a new level this day, continuing on earlier this week from the broad demonstrations that literally shut down the country.

The Hezbollah chief calling curfew to be respected. The Lebanese army saying that curfew, that goes into effect in a little less than an hour from now, would see everybody coming off the streets.

Obviously, as we can see here in the streets of Beirut, there's nobody moving quickly to make it home. But some of them it must be said, are living probably right in this area, as they watch that Syrian National Party Headquarters in flames.

GORANI: And Jim, let me just update our viewers there, you mentioned, Jim, what Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, told his supporters: "Get off the streets, cooperate with the army."

Well, Saad Hariri, of course, the leader of the current government party there, on LBC, the Lebanese television station, saying, "Cooperate with the Lebanese army and security. It's the responsibility of the military" -- this is paraphrasing what he said, not a direct translation. "It's the responsibility of the military to protect lives and homes. And we trust that they can take on this responsibility."

I remember, Jim, when Pierre Gemayel, the Christian pro -- current government minister was assassinated, that many of these political leaders, including the father Pierre Gemayel, called for calm. And one Lebanese journalist on the ground, Jim, told me at that time, you know, "If all of these leaders from all of these different factions had not called for calm openly and publicly, all hell would have broken loose."

And we're seeing this again, the leaders not wanting this country to go to the point of no return.

CLANCY: Yes, but when we have sustained violence like this -- this is the third successive day of violence. The casualties haven't been high. But people reported today -- students reported today seeing snipers. They reported seeing several people wounded by those snipers. And in the words of one student -- this is a quote coming to us from the Associated Press, one student saying, "We are afraid about the future of the country. We are afraid about civil war."

And that student isn't alone.

We're going to have to take a short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

GORANI: We have established a connection with Jihad Azour, the finance minister of Lebanon, who's in Paris right now attending that donors and aid conference for the reconstruction of Lebanon.

Jihad Azour, thanks so much for being with us. As you watch these pictures in your country unfold on the campus of Beirut University, it seems like a simple cafeteria fight, just sort of exploded into an all-out confrontation between rival factions. How concerned are you?

JIHAD AZOUR, LEBANESE FINANCE MINISTER: Well, I didn't understand very well your question.

GORANI: How concerned are you...

AZOUR: About what happened...

GORANI: ... when you watch these pictures on your screen, that a simple tiff between students in a cafeteria, at Beirut University, seems to turn into an all-out confrontation there in Lebanon.

AZOUR: Well, it's very sad what's taking place currently in Beirut, and the streets of Beirut, because today, we have here in Paris, we have had a very successful international conference to help Lebanon, to help all the Lebanese, and to help the Lebanese economy solving its problems. To see what's happening in Beirut, it makes me feel sad. I hope that what we are seeing today will be the end of this attempt of changing things in Lebanon to violence. Dialogue is the only way in Lebanon to solve issues. You have to go back to institutions. Parliament is the best place for dialogue and solving problems.

GORANI: Right. I mean, it's understandable that you're sad, but you're also the member of a government. What is the government going to do? What plan is the government going to put forward to finally quell the violence that we're seeing, day by day, intensify? And in this case, are you concerned also that nobody called on these university students to act this way? This emerged spontaneously.

AZOUR: Well, you know, it's not so spontaneous, because this is a result of weeks and months of, you know, fostering tension in Lebanon, and exacerbating community tensions.

What the government is doing, the government is firm on respecting freedom of people, and this is why we respect their expression of opinions, but also the government is firm of maintaining security, maintaining stability. The majority of the Lebanese people, what they want, they want prosperity. They want peace. They want to go back to their work. They don't like what they are seeing currently in the street.

Therefore, the government is on one hand open and respectful of freedom and, on the other hand, is firm of protecting the citizen and keeping the country secure.

GORANI: Should your prime minister, the prime minister of Lebanon, Fouad Siniora, have traveled to Paris today in light of what's going on in Lebanon?

AZOUR: Well, the prime minister was, as you know, very busy today with the conference, but also he was in direct contact with Lebanon. The prime minister came here to Paris in the name of the Lebanese people, in order to promote the Lebanese economic reform program and get international support and assistance, and as you know, we were able to raise more than $7 billion of assistance for Lebanon, for the Lebanese recovery, as well as also an order to address the various problems Lebanon is facing.

The picture is completely different in Beirut, and we wonder why things are escalating. The only result of this escalation is to undermine all that the government is doing in order to improve the economic situation and to address the problems of Lebanon after the war of this summer.

GORANI: Jihad Azour, the opposition has been demonstrating for more than a month and a half now, saying they want veto power, they want more say in the Lebanese government. Will the government of Fouad Siniora ever come to a point where they accept that the opposition parties have veto power within the government? And that's really a yes or no question.

AZOUR: Sorry, I didn't understand the question. Could you repeat it please?

GORANI: Will the government of Fouad Siniora ever come to a point where it will be accepted that the opposition parties obtain a veto power within the cabinet?

AZOUR: Well, you know, this is the wrong question and wrong issue, because as you know, all decisions in this cabinet in 18 months of work were taken in a consensual way, unanimous decisions. Only one issue came, and the cabinet voted on, and it was the international tribunal. Therefore, this cabinet took thousands of decisions, in a way that everybody was participating, and the issue is not participation. The issue is preventing the rule of democracy functioning.

GORANI: Minister Azour, I'm sorry for interrupting, just in the interests of time -- you're saying this is the wrong question. This is what the opposition is fighting for. How can it be the wrong question? This is what they want. Will the government give it to them?

AZOUR: Well, you know, as you know the various proposals for a solution gave the opposition the right of not, if you want, to express its views, but without blocking the functioning of the government. Go back, you know, to the same issue. I think the issue is to put al the people around the same table to discuss in -- through the institution in a way to solve the problems. There is a proposal made by the Arab League. And this proposal is a good base for negotiation and discussion.

GORANI: All right, well, we'll be following the situation in your country, and thank you so much, Jihad Azour, the Lebanese finance minister, for joining us live from the French capital.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: Welcome back.

Now millions of the Hindu faithful travel at this time of year to the sacred Ganges River to perform rituals meant to purify their souls.

CLANCY: And with traditions stretching back more than 3,000 years, Hindu Sandus (ph), or seekers of enlightenment, are prominent at the river and in camps nearby.

GORANI: Seth Doane has their unique story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SETH DOANE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Smoking from the chillum often ganja or hashish, a naked Sandu, or holy man, tokes to get closer to God.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

DOANE: "Lord Shiva was naked so we remain naked for our whole lives," the Sandu says. "We keep ourselves away from worldly pleasures and live to defend Hinduism."

It's the Ehrd Koumela (ph), one of the holiest times for Hindus and one of the largest gatherings of human beings on earth. Journeying to the holy Ganges River, about 60 million Hindus will make the pilgrimage to dip in these frigid waters, believing they'll wash their sins away.

H.S. SHIVA PRAKASH, JAWAHARTAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY: This is a place where believers of the French (ph) schools of Hinduism can come together and perform a ritual which holds them all together.

DOANE: The Mishra (ph) family has already taken their dip in the water.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

DOANE: "The Hindu religion and Hindu family concepts are almost the same," he says. "Our family looks small, but I've brought them here to show them that the whole world is one family."

Arching to see in over the crowd, the Mishras look at a Sandu covered in 11,000 beads.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

DOANE: "Whoever wears these beads for 12 years and meditates becomes capable of protecting Hindu religion and its followers," he says.

(on camera): We've been invited to the center of the Sandus' camp. They tell us not only do they pass along religion, but that they pass along culture here, too. And people come to them. They're fascinated to get to meet Sandus. It's rare for them all to be together, except for here at the koumela.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

DOANE (voice-over): Lighting wood on fire, this Sandu will sit above the flames as penance.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

DOANE: "Through my prayers I am looking for peace. I want to become one with God," he says.

He'll meditate for hours, sitting on a swinging chair made of nails.

(on camera): When you see these Sandus sitting on fires, keeping their hands in the air for ten years, do you think it's funny or do you get something out of it?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

DOANE (voice-over): "I'm immensely impressed," she says. "I think through their sustained, deep meditation they have achieved superpowers which enable them to perform unusual things."

The Ehrd Koumela is a euphoric adventure of religious belief, flamboyant at times, even resembling a carnival with its lights and sounds. But beneath the colorful exterior shows the profound power of faith.

Seth Doane, CNN, Alahabad (ph), India.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: All right. We're continuing to cover the situation in Lebanon. This update we just got about half an hour ago until the curfew goes into effect. Walid Jumblatt, leader of the Druze community in Lebanon, speaking on Al-Arabiya. Let's listen.

WALID JUMBLATT, LEADER OF THE DRUZE COMMUNITY (translated): ... member of the city and National Party, and that person was arrested and handed over to the military. Today we have the army protecting the state institutions and protecting the streets. We have agreed for a consultation that a curfew will be imposed until -- from 8:30 this evening to 7:30 in the morning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

JUMBLATT: Only Hezbollah has such an arsenal. The people in Lebanon have personal firearms, but they don't have missiles. Only Hezbollah has such capacity and such arsenal.

What do they want from us? We ask Hezbollah to vacate the streets of Beirut, to get out of the streets. And also we call upon the Syrian regime to leave. The Syrian regime is afraid of the International Court.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

JUMBLATT: I said there is anarchy in all parts of Lebanon. One of our members opened fire two days ago. And he was arrested and handed over to the army. The so-called opposition and Hassan Nasrallah have planned these problems.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

JUMBLATT: So what you're saying, that your party has nothing to do with what happened today?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com