Naharnet:

Showers of Rice, Sweets and Petals for Ahmadinejad in Beirut

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was greeted on Wednesday with adulation by tens of thousands of Hizbullah supporters who showered him with rice, sweets and petals as he began his first official visit to Lebanon.

"We love Ahmadinejad because he helps the poor and he helped us rebuild after the 2006 war with Israel," said a man who gave his name only as Munir, referring to the devastating conflict between the powerful Shiite armed group Hizbullah and Israel.

"Iran helped us more than Arab states did," added Munir, 47, who closed his scrap metal shop to join the vast crowds of men, women and children who lined the streets leading to Beirut's airport to welcome the Iranian leader.

Ali Obeid said he, his wife and two daughters had come to the airport to express their gratitude for the aid and money Iran had given Lebanon's Shiite community after the 2006 war.

Ahmadinejad's convoy was showered with rice, sweets and flower petals as it slowly made its way toward the presidential palace from the airport amid tight security.

The crowd screamed "khosh amadi" (welcome in Farsi) and "allahu akbar" (God is greatest), as he smiled and waved through the sunroof of his vehicle.

"I am here to express my support for the Islamic Republic of Iran," said a woman named Afaf as she stood outside the airport with her two children waving Iranian flags.

"Along with Iran, we are engaged in the same battle against Israel."

Huge banners with pictures of Ahmadinejad were put up near the airport and in Hizbullah's stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs while Iranian flags lined the airport highway.

Giant pictures of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who led the 1979 Islamic revolution that toppled the U.S.-backed shah, also lined the roads in Hizbullah's stronghold.

"We have been waiting for this day for so long," said Zeinab Hashem, 53, who like most of the women at the airport was dressed in black. "He is the best president, the most honest, and helps us without expecting anything in return."

Hizbullah's Al Manar television, which for days had been encouraging a massive turnout to greet Ahmadinejad, described the visit as "historic."

"This welcome is a slap in the face for those who have criticized this visit, notably the United States and Israel, which are very nervous about the trip," it said.

Ahmadinejad's first visit since his election in 2005 will highlight the clout Iran wields in Lebanon through Hizbullah, considered Tehran's proxy and by far the most powerful military and political force in the small Mediterranean country.

But members of Lebanon's pro-Western parliamentary majority have denounced the trip as a bid to portray Lebanon as "an Iranian base on the Mediterranean."

Many Christians and Sunnis in the country are also wary of the visit.

"This is no longer our country," lamented Georges, 61, who would not give his last name. "This country is for Hizbullah and Iran now, and God knows what Hizbullah is cooking up for us after the visit.

"May God help us."

Added Mona, 43, a Christian woman who lives north of Beirut: "I am disgusted by this visit.

"They refer to him (Ahmadinejad) as a savior but all he has brought us is trouble."(AFP)