Lebanon marks 20th anniversary of Rafik Hariri's assassination amid political shifts

 Thousands of supporters gathered in downtown Beirut on Friday to mark the 20th anniversary of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassination, which comes amid seismic regional political shifts, reports AP>

The ousting of Bashar Assad in December after 54 years of family rule in Syria marked the fall of a government long accused of orchestrating Hariri’s assassination and other political killings in Lebanon

Meanwhile, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah — whose members were convicted by a U.N.-backed tribunal for their role in Hariri’s murder — now faces its own turning point following the assassination of its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, in an Israeli airstrike in September. Nasrallah’s funeral is set for February 23.

“This is the beginning of justice. If the justice of the earth did not serve us, no one escapes the justice of heaven," said Hariri’s son, former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, as he addressed a huge crowd in the capital Beirut.

"After 20 years, Rafik Hariri’s project is continuing, and those who tried to kill the project, look where they are now," Saad added.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, appointed in early February, visited Hariri’s burial site Friday.

“Today, we remember the legacy of the great martyr in serving Lebanon, preserving its national unity, and working for its prosperity,” Salam wrote on X. “He was greatly respected in the Arab world and the world, leaving Lebanon with a remarkable moral and political legacy.”

Lebanon’s president Joseph Aoun also paid tribute to Hariri, saying on X that Hariri's "national stances were a fundamental building block in strengthening national unity and protecting civil peace.”

Hariri was killed on Feb. 14, 2005, when a massive bomb exploded near the St. Georges Hotel, a historic landmark on Beirut’s waterfront. The blast killed 21 other people and injured over 200.

In 2020, a U.N.-backed tribunal convicted one member of the Hezbollah militant group and acquitted three others of involvement in the assassination. The Special Tribunal for Lebanon said Salim Ayyash was guilty as a co-conspirator of five charges linked to his involvement in the suicide truck bombing.

None of the suspects was ever arrested or attended court to hear the verdicts.

The assassination of Hariri ignited the “Cedar Revolution,” leading to massive protests against Syria’s nearly three-decade military presence in Lebanon, ultimately culminating in the withdrawal of Syrian troops in 2005. The assassination also intensified sectarian divisions within Lebanon and bolstered the political influence of Assad's ally, Hezbollah.