Tensions have run high in recent weeks between the Shiite movements Amal and Hizbullah, with sources in Lebanon claiming that the main reason for the growing rift lies in Hizbullah's fear that Amal is attempting to undermine its support base, especially amongst students.
Strife between the two pro-Syrian factions intensified late last month, leading to violent clashes which left at least 13 wounded and nine others in police custody when clashes erupted between Amal and Hizbullah students at the Lebanese University in Hadath and at the Lebanese American University (LAU).
Disagreements between the two groups arose over celebrations marking the sixth 'Liberation Day,' commemorating Israel's withdrawal from south Lebanon in 2000. The tension began on May 23 when a Hizbullah student set up a stand on campus at the Lebanese University, calling on students to express their views regarding Liberation Day. Another student—from Amal—took offense to the Hizbullah stand, and reportedly replaced the word "Hizbullah" with "Amal" on its placard. The incident deteriorated to fights between students from both groups.
According to Hizbullah, some 30 Amal students, armed with knives and rods, arrived in the scene. Local papers reported that internal security forces were called in to contain the clashes, which had by then spread to include scores of students.
A day later, Hizbullah organized a ceremony marking Liberation Day at the Social Science faculty of the school. A Hizbullah source claimed that during the event, elements from Amal, which included students and other supporters out of the university, attempted to interrupt the ceremony and taunted Hizbullah supporters. Chaos ensued.
In an attempt to ease tensions and prevent more from erupting, senior officials from Amal and Hizbullah met on the evening of May 24 to discuss the violent events. After the talks, both sides stressed the "brotherly" relations between the two movements and described the clashes as merely "isolated" events.
A similar clash was reported on the same day at the LAU campus. Subsequently, LAU President Joseph Jabra issued a statement saying that as a result of the incident, the institution had decided to expel several students. Classes were also suspended after the scuffle, while all students were asked to leave campus to avoid further violence, the LAU statement said. Jabra also decided to ban all further political activity on campus grounds. The move was welcomed by Amal and also by Lebanon's Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, but surprised Hizbullah.
It should be noted that the Hizbullah – Amal rift is not new. Traditionally, intense political and electoral rivalry existed between Hizbullah and Amal in their efforts to achieve hegemony within the Shiite population.
A Lebanese political expert summed up the issue by saying: "The Amal – Hizbullah student fights should be perceived as part of the ideological differences between these two Shiite movements. One should not forget the fierce fighting between these two Shiite rivals in late 1980s and in 2002. The two cooperated in the recent elections, but Amal seems now not ready to leave the entire arena of Shiite politics to Hizbullah alone."
