detonate Lebanon's political crisis.

Lebanese were struggling to contain tensions after Shiites were fired on Sunday as they walked through Sunni and mixed neighborhoods following an anti-government demonstration in downtown Beirut. The attack raised memories of Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war, when Beirut was divided by the Green Line between its warring Christian and Muslim districts.

Now Lebanon's divisions fall along different lines: The government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora has widespread support among Sunnis, while its opponent, the pro-Syrian Hezbollah, is backed by Shiites. Lebanon's Christians largely support the government, though a major faction has allied with Hezbollah.

The body of Ahmed Mahmoud, a 20-year-old Shiite, was brought by ambulance Monday night to downtown Riad Solh Square, where thousands of pro-Hezbollah protesters were camping for the fourth straight night demanding the ouster of Siniora's government.

The protesters cheered, blared nationalist songs and waved the Lebanese flag as the coffin was placed on a platform in front of the crowd, just a few hundred yards from Siniora's offices, which were ringed by troops.

Hezbollah's Al-Manar television station, which aired the event live, called Mahmoud "the martyr of national unity." Mahmoud's funeral was scheduled for Tuesday.

Mahmoud's father, Ali, said he initially had thought of revenge, but backed down after a visit by envoys of Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah and his ally, Parliament Speaker and leader of the Shiite Amal Movement Nabih Berri, who said vengeance would only play into the hands of those trying to divide Lebanon.

"They said my son was martyred for the homeland and they don't want chaos, but want all sects to live in harmony, to love each other," Mahmoud said as he received well-wishers at a funeral hall.

He said he hoped that Siniora, who has been holed up in his office since Friday, will quit. "Then, everything will be fine. We don't want problems between Sunnis and Shiites, Christians and Druze," he said.

Ahmed Mahmoud and his brother Hassan were returning home from the protest Sunday and had just turned a corner when heavy gunfire broke out.

"Ali said, 'Let's run the other way,'" said Hassan, 22. He said he heard his brother scream, and saw him fall, but kept running. An hour later, the family got a call saying Ahmed had been killed by a bullet to the back.

Hassan Mahmoud accused Siniora and his top ally, Saad Hariri - son of slain Sunni former prime minister Rafik Hariri - of causing problems "so Sunnis and Shiites start fighting each other."

Accounts of how the shooting started varied. Sunnis in the neighborhood said the Shiites returning from the rally began chanting rude slogans against Sunni leaders, provoking Sunnis to throw stones. Some - Sunnis and Shiites - said they believed the came from outsiders not connected to the rally.

"I expect things to get worse, there will be war. The signs are all there," said Issam Qadah, a Sunni coffee vendor who heard the gunfire.

Mazen Mizhir, 19, a Sunni student, said he was worried about his safety because his college was in a Shiite neighborhood. "Tomorrow, Nasrallah and Saad Hariri will kiss one another and make up. It's only the ordinary people who will lose," he said.

Mohammed Barakat, a 34-year-old Sunni, blamed Hezbollah for the crisis. "We (Sunnis) feel like foreigners in our own land," he said. "We're living on the edge."

The political crisis began escalating when six pro-Hezbollah ministers resigned from the Cabinet last month after Siniora and his anti-Syrian majority in parliament rejected the group's demand for a new national unity government that would effectively give it and its allies veto power.

Hezbollah says it will continue its protest campaign until Siniora agrees to step down; the prime minister and his supporters have vowed to stay.

Siniora, a Sunni, gave a veiled warning Sunday of the possibility of Sunni-Shiite fighting, saying that any attempt by Hezbollah's supporters to storm his office would lead to "a major and serious problem."

Picture: Hezbollah and Amal movement members carry the coffin of Ahmed Mahmoud, a 20-year-old Shiite , who was killed in Beirut suburb yesterday after protesting in downtown Beirut. 3 Syrian nationals were arrested in connection with the shoot out that led to his death

Source: AP, Ya Libnan