sect

It is the most powerful political force in Lebanon and a social movement which serves as a bulwark for Lebanon’s long-discriminated Shia communities against other sects in the country.

The civil war, which lasted 15 years and left almost 150,000 people dead, pitted militias linked to Lebanon’s sects against each other.

With 18 official sects, Lebanon employs a complex political system in which religious communities share power and government positions and seats in parliament are distributed in rough proportion to the country’s demographics.

“It’s as if criticizing South Africa meant you were anti-white or if criticizing Saudi Arabia means you are anti-Sunni,” he said, referring to that kingdom’s dominant Islamic sect.

It has also been linked to Al-Arqam, a religious sect that was banned by the Malaysian government in 1994 due to concerns about deviant Islamic teachings.