Lebanon troops prepare for opposition protest

BEIRUT, Dec 1 (Reuters) Thousands of Lebanese troops and police fanned out in Beirut today before a Hezbollah-led opposition protest aimed at bringing down the Western-backed government.

Pro-Syrian Hezbollah and its allies have called on Lebanese from across the country to take part in the protest. It is due to start at 1830 hrs IST and will be followed by an indefinite sit-in.

Large numbers of security forces, backed by armoured personnel carriers, deployed in central Beirut where a big turnout was expected. The forces also deployed at the entrances to the capital.

Scores of soldiers, using barbed wire and metal barriers, cordoned off the complex housing the government's offices in the downtown area. Less than 30 meters away, Hezbollah supporters were setting up loudspeakers and putting up banners.

''We want a clean government,'' one banner read.

Hezbollah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Kassem said the protests would not end until Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's government fell.

''This government will not take Lebanon to the abyss. We have several steps if this government did not respond but I tell them you will not be able to rule Lebanon with an American administration,'' he told Hezbollah's al-Manar television.

Hezbollah, which is backed by Syria and Iran, has branded the government a U S puppet.

The anti-Syrian politicians who control the cabinet say the Shi'ite Muslim group and its allies want to stage a coup. Siniora said on Thursday his government would not stand down.

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