WASHINGTON (AFP) – US President George W. Bush left the door open for Hezbollah to play a central political role in Lebanon, urging the Shiite movement to “prove” it does not deserve to be branded a terrorist group.  “We view Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, and I would hope that Hezbollah would prove that they’re not, by laying down arms and not threatening peace” between Israel and the Palestinians, said Bush. The White House last week denied a media report that the United States was grudgingly moving into line with efforts by France and the United Nations  to get the group into the Lebanese political mainstream. But aides said privately that Washington faces a quandary how to deal with the group, noting that it wields considerable political clout in Lebanon ahead of May parliamentary elections there.

“PA” ,  A million demonstrators chanting

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) – Maronite Cardinal Nasrallah Sfeir, a strong critic of Syria’s control in Lebanon who left Monday for a meeting with President Bush has emerged as a key opposition figure whose influence cuts across sectarian lines in this religiously diverse nation. The soft-spoken 84-year-old patriarch, head of the Maronite Catholic Church, began criticizing Syrian interference in Lebanese affairs when few dared challenge the authority of the pro-Syria government and its Syrian backers. His first major salvo came in September, months before Lebanon was thrust into the spotlight with the Feb. 14 assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri, a killing that has triggered mass street demonstrations demanding that Syria get out of Lebanon.

BEIRUT (AFP) – By car, bus and boat thousands of Lebanese poured into the capital for a huge demonstration called by an emboldened opposition determined to end Syria’s near 30-year military presence in Lebanon. Hours before the mid-afternoon start to the rally, more than 1 million people, according to estimates by correspondents and photographers, were packed into Martyrs Square in central Beirut. Many waved the red, white and green Lebanese flag on a splendid, sun-splashed Mediterranean morning near the grave of former prime minister Rafiq Hariri, assassinated in a bomb blast exactly one month ago and in whose memory the rally has been called.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Bush said on Tuesday authoritarian rule in the Middle East is the “last gasp of a discredited past” and he demanded Syria pull troops out of Lebanon before Lebanese parliamentary elections in May. Bush used a wide-ranging speech at the National Defense University to lend verbal support to what he called a trend toward democracy in the Middle East. “Suddenly the thaw has begun,” he declared.

TEHRAN (AFP) – Iran is juggling an eagerness not to anger Lebanon, maintaining a close friendship with Syria and backing its key ally Hezbollah whom it sees as threatened by the pressure on Damascus to pull out its troops. Iranian goverment spokesman Abdollah Ramazanzadeh on Monday denounced what he said were “foreign provocations that have always caused trouble in Lebanon”. But in a sign that Iran has been forced to accept a Syrian pullback from Lebanon, he added that the Islamic republic would “respect any decision taken by the majority of Lebanese even if it against our vision”.

By ANNE GEARAN, AP Diplomatic Writer WASHINGTON – The United States reacted warily Monday to word that Syria will pull back its troops to the eastern part of Lebanon and demanded that it withdraw its forces “completely and immediately.”  The announcement of a phased troop pullback was denounced by White House spokesman Scott McClellan as “a half measure.” The presidents of Syria and Lebanon announced Monday that the Syrian troops would be pulled back to eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley by March 31. No timetable was announced for a full pullout.

BEIRUT (AFP) – Lebanon’s bourse leader Solidere is to be listed on the booming Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) from Tuesday, the Beirut downtown real estate giant said. Lebanon’s former premier Rafiq Hariri, who was assassinated on February 14, founded Solidere in 1994 to rebuild Lebanon following its 15-year civil war. “Solidere wants to attract more Arab investors, especially Kuwaitis who have a permanent interest in Solidere shares, in the Lebanese real estate sector and in particular the downtown area,” the firm said in a statement. It said the KSE was attractive because of its high liquidity.

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, under pressure to withdraw troops from Lebanon, insisted he should not be compared to Saddam Hussein and that he wanted to cooperate with international demands, according to an interview. most from the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri, whose killing led to stepped up calls for Syria to pullout from neighboring Lebanon. When asked who had killed Hariri, Assad told the weekly: “The most important question is, Who had the benefit of it? “As president, I can’t tell you this country or that. But who suffered most from it? Syria. Syria was the biggest loser. The Lebanese, definitely, they lost … But Syria lost more.”

CAIRO, Egypt – Saudi officials told Syrian President Bashar Assad on Thursday that he must fully withdraw troops from Lebanon and begin soon or face strains in Saudi-Syrian ties. Assad promised only to study the idea of a partial withdrawal by later this month. The kingdom took a tough line as Assad met with the Saudi leader, Crown Prince Abdullah, and other officials in Riyadh. So far, Damascus has resisted Arab pressure for a quick pullout from Lebanon.