Hizbullah and its allies called for mass protests in Beirut tomorrow in an effort to bring down Lebanon's Western-backed government.
Hizbullah secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah said Prime Minister Fuad Saniora's administration "has failed to fulfil its promises and achieve anything significant." Peaceful protests should force it to resign, he said.
Schoolchildren pass by an armoured personnel carrier in Beirut
"I call upon you all for a popular action to put pressure to achieve this goal," Mr Nasrallah said in a broadcast on Hizbullah's television station, stressing that the demonstrations should be "peaceful and civilised".
Hizbullah and other opposition groups said the protest would begin on Friday at 3pm. in downtown Beirut, where Mr Saniora's embattled government has its headquarters.
The call came after weeks of political tension between pro-Syrian groups in the opposition, led by the Shia Muslim Hizbullah, and anti-Syrian factions supporting the government, which has wide Western backing.
The prime minister and members of his Cabinet have been bracing for mass demonstrations for days. The security forces have deployed troops, barbed wire and armoured vehicles outside the main government office complex, where the prime minister and some ministers have been sleeping in a guest house.
Hizbullah, emboldened by its performance in its summer war with Israel, has been pushing for a bigger share of the cabinet, demanding that the militant group and its allies acquire sufficient seats to veto decisions.
But the anti-Syrian majority in parliament, which backs Mr Saniora, has rejected Hizbullah's demands, prompting the resignation of a quarter of the cabinet - five Shia Muslims and one Christian - early this month.
Last week, Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel was assassinated in a suburban Beirut street, renewing fears that the political crisis was carrying Lebanon back to the sectarian violence of the 1975-90 civil war.
AP