Lebanon has begun three days of mourning for Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel whose assassination, blamed by his allies on Damascus, has raised fears of a new spate of factional violence.
Mr Gemayel was shot dead when his car was blocked by two other vehicles as he drove through a Christian suburb of Beirut. He was the sixth anti-Syrian politician to be killed in nearly two years.
Ceremonies and festivities for Lebanon's Independence Day today were cancelled as a result.
This morning Mr Gemayel's body was driven to his hometown in Bekfaya, north-east of Beirut and hundreds of sympathisers walked behind the coffin, waving the white-and-green flags of his Phalange Party.
His funeral will take place tomorrow.
Last night, the UN Security Council approved plans for a special international court to try suspects in the murder of Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri last year, but the tribunal has been a divisive issue between the rival Lebanese parties.
Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's government had accepted the terms of the court last week, but six ministers resigned before the vote.
Lebanon's pro-Syrian President, Emile Lahoud, called the cabinet action illegitimate.
The UN's investigation of the 2005 murder has implicated Lebanese and Syrian security officials, though Syria denies any links with either that or yesterday's killing.
