Specter of civil conflict in Lebanon looms as economic meltdown gives way to violence
CNN
Fistfights break out in supermarkets nearly every day daily. Long lines snake out of the few open gas stations. Pharmacies have threatened to close. Gunfights inexplicably erupt in various parts of Beirut. And the situation could soon get worse.
The infernal scenes threaten to take a turn for the worse. Increasingly, Lebanon's officials and politicians raise the specter of internal conflict. This comes just 31 years after the end of the country's gruesome 15-year civil war. That black chapter was drawn to a close by a modus vivendi that critics say systematized government corruption, culminating in a financial meltdown that has brought Lebanon, once again, to the brink.
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