Security officials in Lebanon say that one person has been killed and five wounded in fighting between supporters of rival Druze politicians. The clashes were between supporters of the pro-Syrian former minister, Wiam Wahhab, and the anti-Syrian politician, Walid Jumblatt.

They broke out during a dispute over the display of political posters in the town of Jahliye, south of Beirut. The security forces moved in to stop the fighting. It was not clear which side began the shooting, but acting Interior Minister Ahmed Fatfat said all the casualties appeared to be supporters of Mr Jumblatt.

Tensions, This is not the first clash between the two groups. In April, Mr Wahhab’s bodyguards shot and wounded two civilians who objected to his presence at a funeral in a Druze mountain village. Tensions between supporters and opponents of Syria’s influence in Lebanon have increased since the assassination of the former Lebanese PM Rafiq Hariri, in February 2005.

  BEIRUT: Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir responded on Thursday to what he described as former Minister Suleiman Franjieh’s "misplaced" verbal attack on a bishop. Sfeir said he regretted Franjieh’s comments and wished the former MP had not made them.

"We know that … Franjieh is the son of the Maronite Church and a citizen of Zghorta, and that he is concerned about the Maronite Church, its children and its respect, so when he attacks a bishop I believe the attack is misplaced," Sfeir said. The prelate’s response came ahead of his departure on a visit to the United States expected to last at least 20 days. During his visit Sfeir is expected to participate in a commemoration of the Maronite Church’s founding in the US 40 years ago.

While the patriarch noted the importance of resolving the issue before it escalated, he stated unequivocally that "a bishop must be respected." On Wednesday, Franjieh accused Bishop Youssef Beshara of having sided with MP Saad Hariri, the leader of the parliamentary majority.

Patriarch of the Maronite Catholic Church to Make Historic Stop in the Greater Boston Area July 12-14, His Beatitude and Eminence Nasrallah Peter Cardinal Sfeir to Visit St. Anthony’s Maronite Church in Lawrence Considered ‘Bridge’ Between Muslim Community and Christians and the West

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, At a meeting with religious leaders Saturday, Lebanese Cardinal Nasrallah Peter Sfeir, patriarch of the Maronite Catholic Church, stressed the need for people of all faiths to help quell global conflict that is often rooted in religious difference."Each of us has a responsibility to look after each other," he said. "We can co-exist in harmony and respect for each other if we keep love in our hearts."

Sfeir spoke to roughly two dozen leaders of various St. Louis faith groups – Mormons, Muslims, Quakers, Roman Catholics – at an interfaith event at St. Raymond’s Maronite Catholic Parish, 931 Lebanon Drive, St. Louis. Sfeir is in St. Louis for a four-day pastoral visit. He will also be stopping in Chicago and New York City.
During his time in St. Louis, Sfeir’s main message was one of hope and peace. At Saturday’s interfaith event, Ghazala Hayat, president of the Interfaith Partnership of Metropolitan St. Louis, asked Sfeir if it was possible to have peace in the Middle East.

"When politics intervenes, it is sometimes hard to see people living together," said Sfeir. "But religion has no material interest. Religion has only God, and if we all pray to God as one, all humanity will be together as brothers."The patriarch is one of the most significant religious figures to visit St. Louis since Pope John Paul II came to the city in 1999.The Maronite Church, an ancient Eastern Rite branch of Catholicism, is based in Lebanon. St. Raymond’s, in St. Louis’ LaSalle Park neighborhood, is the seat of one of two eparchies, or dioceses, of the Maronite Church in the U.S. Sfeir lives in Bkerke, north of Beirut.