Let’s face facts – Lebanon is in a civil war

I think it may be time for the Lebanese to face facts ­ — we are now in a state of civil war. Time and time again when I have seen friends in recent weeks, there has been something of a familiar refrain: ‘the situation is bad, yes, but we are not there yet.’ It may not feel like a civil war from your office in Downtown Beirut, or Ashrafieh, or Hamra, but there has been more than the equivalent of a bomb per week in the first two months of 2014. Dozens have died as rival Lebanese (as well as Syrian and Palestinian) political groupings carry out tit-for-tat attacks and crackdowns. And those are just the successful ones. The security services have discovered a number of other explosive-rigged cars that sought to wreak havoc. If you don’t believe we are in a civil war, speak to the people of