Lebanese political figures have become notorious for taking their rather unseemly catfights to Twitter and Facebook, leading some to wonder whether tweeting their spats is the only thing keeping these pillars of the Lebanese community from literally being at each other's throats.

1. http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/08/10/make_tweet_not_war#.UCtcRCanCTl.cleanprint
Make tweet, not war foreignpolicy.com
Lebanese political
figures have
become notorious
for taking their
rather unseemly
catfights to
Twitter and
Facebook,
leading some to
wonder whether
tweeting their
spats is the only
thing keeping
these pillars of
the Lebanese
community from
literally being at
each other's
throats. Former
Prime Minister
and leader of the
March 14
coalition, Saad Hariri, is by far the most egregious offender, using Twitter as a platform for his many grievances
against the ruling Hezbollah-backed March 8 bloc. Hariri waxes philosophical in this July tweet:
"I hope the Holy month will bring all closer to the values of brotherhood and tolerance. An occasion for
some to go back to their conscience."
Hariri, who used to tweet so frequently that the AFP actually wrote a story about it last year, has been noticeably
quiet lately following some cringe-worthy virtual gaffes. In January, he cheerfully tweeted "Good morning" to the
Israeli minister of defense, prompting widespread outrage, since Lebanon is still technically at war with Israel. As if
that weren't bad enough, Hariri displayed some markedly undignified behavior when let himself be baited by one of
his followers in May. A few samples:
Another
noteworthy
virtual brawl
took place in
April, when
the head of the
Free Patriotic
movement,
Michel Aoun,
held a
question-and-answer
session on his
Facebook
page. While
answering one
of the
questions, Aoun insulted Lebanese President, Michel Sleiman, by saying that the leader of Lebanon should
command a parliamentary bloc instead of "begging at the door of some ministers." Sleiman responded by tweeting
Page 1 of 2 15/08/2012 02:22 AM

2. http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/08/10/make_tweet_not_war#.UCtcRCanCTl.cleanprint
that "At least a consensual president does not beg for the presidency. On the contrary, everyone asks him to accept
the post of president."
According to Think Media Labs, a Lebanese social media marketing agency, July was quite an active month for the
many Lebanese politicians who frequent Twitter. Minister of Energy Gebran Bassil was the most prolific tweeter,
with 226 tweets, while member of the pro-Western March 14 alliance Antoine Haddad was the most responsive to
his followers.
Perhaps Twitter, by providing Lebanese politicians with a platform to get snarky, is the only thing standing in the
way of another civil war. Who needs to start shooting when you can run your mouth instead?
Page 2 of 2 15/08/2012 02:22 AM