Lebanese anti-Syrian Christian leader Samir Geagea (R) speaks to his wife Strida after being released from prison in Beirut July 26,2005. Geagea, the only militia chief punished for his part in Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war, left jail on Tuesday after 11 years in a step toward reconciliations after the end of the Syrian tutelage he bitterly opposed. REUTERS/Dalati Nohra/Pool

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BEIRUT (Reuters) - Samir Geagea, the only Lebanese warlord punished for his role in the 1975-90 civil war, left jail after 11 years on Tuesday in a step toward reconciliation after the end of the Syrian tutelage he bitterly opposed. Welcomed by supporters throwing rice and roses, the leader of the Lebanese Forces, the most powerful Christian wartime militia, was freed under an amnesty law the newly elected parliament, now dominated by foes of Damascus, passed last week.Geagea, 52, was driven to Beirut airport, where he embraced well-wishers and thanked old foes who united to help end Syria's 29-year grip on Lebanon in April and push for his release. "O Lebanese people, you left the large prison you were put in and took me with you out of the small jail I was put in," said Geagea in the first speech after his release, before leaving with his wife and aides on a flight to France. Taking aim at Syria's postwar sway, he said: "The Lebanese house has been shaken and unbalanced as a result of 15 years of frustration, but we will spare no effort to boost understanding with our allies to make the necessary rehabilitation."Geagea had been serving four life sentences for political murders during the civil war, including the 1987 killing of Prime Minister Rashid Karami, and spent most of his jail time in solitary confinement in an underground defense ministry cell. He has always proclaimed his innocence and said he was victimized for his staunch opposition to Syria. Syria withdrew its troops after the February assassination of ex-Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri caused world outcry. Many Lebanese blamed Syria for the killing. Damascus denied any role.

During her visit to the Middle East last week, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made a surprise visit to Lebanon, where she reiterated Washington's support for that nascent democracy. Speaking in Beirut on Friday, Miss Rice warned Syrian strongman Bashar Assad against continuing his efforts to sabotage Lebanon's economy.   "We would like to see the day when there are good neighborly relations between Syria and Lebanon based on mutual respect and equality, she said. "But good neighbors don't close their borders to their neighbors," Miss Rice said in reference to Syrian "security" measures that have stranded Lebanese vehicles at the border between the two countries. "It is a very serious situation on the Lebanon border, where Lebanese trade is being strangled,"she added.  Indeed, even though Syria formally withdrew all of its troops from Lebanon at the end of April, there have been persistent reports that Syrian intelligence agents continue to operate in the country. Lebanese democracy is also endangered by Iran and Syria's longtime terrorist ally Hezbollah, which simultaneously functions as a Lebanese political party and a militia armed with more than 12,000 rockets, missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles. For now, Hezbollah, which substantially increased its presence in the Lebanese Parliament in the elections which concluded last month, will probably be successful in thwarting any efforts by the new Lebanese government to force it to disarm (as all of the other militias in the country, Muslim and Christian alike, did right after the Lebanese Civil War ended 15 years ago.) For the first time ever, the new Lebanese cabinet will include a Hezbollah member -- the energy and water minister, Mohammad Fneish. Given the organization's commitment to Israel's destruction, this will likely block any possibility of negotiations with Israel over water issues, a longstanding source of conflict. Although he is not formally a member of Hezbollah, the new foreign minister, Fawzi Salloukh, is a Shi'ite Muslim who is seen as being sympathetic to that organization. Other members of the new Lebanese government, in particular Defense Minister Elias Murr, are allies of Syria -- a reality that could paralyze the Lebanese Army and prevent it from ever becoming an effective counterweight to Hezbollah. So long as Lebanon's security forces fail to exercise full security control over the country's sovereign territory, Lebanon cannot be considered a fully independent, functioning democratic state.

Lebanon will demonstrate whether democracy stands a chance in the Middle East. Right now, it's a flip of the coin. -- Alan C. By Alan Caruba For anyone who is not Lebanese, trying to understand what is happening in a nation long regarded as an example of how Christians and Muslims could work together to govern and prosper remains a confusing matrix of competing religious factions. Lebanon, i.e. Beirut, was the Paris of the Middle East. It was modern and cosmopolitan. It was a financial hub. It was a place where a Muslim could go and enjoy its secular pleasures. That was, of course, prior to its fifteen year civil war from 1975 to 1990. It was triggered by an influx of heavily armed Palestinian refugees, many of whom arrived after being driven out of Jordan followed a failed attempt to overthrow the Hashemite monarchy. Today, Lebanon is the misbegotten child of French colonialism and its present troubles are usually dated to its independence in 1943. Prior to that it was a French protectorate,