Around 250 Lebanese university students demonstrated against Syria in Beirut on Saturday, tearing up pictures of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and calling him an "assassin." ( dpa )
The students, mainly supporters of Lebanon's western-backed government of Premier Fouad Seniora demonstrated near the tomb of slain former prime minister Rafik Hariri.
"Assad, you and your regime, will succeed in blocking the election of a new president in Lebanon," the crowd chanted.
The demonstration came few hours after Al-Assad opened the Arab summit in Damascus and told the gathering that the people of Lebanon were the key players to end the stand-off and elect a new president.
Lebanon is boycotting the two-day summit.
Hariri was killed in a massive car bombing in 2005 which Lebanon's anti-Syrian ruling majority blames on Syria. Damascus denies any involvement.
The students on Saturday also warned of the planned United Nations-backed special tribunal tasked with trying suspects in the Hariri case.
On Friday, Seniora said his government decided to boycott the Damascus, and accused Syria of meddling in its affairs.
On Saturday, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan - the leaders of which were among the nine leaders absent from the Arab Summit - blame Syria for the crisis gripping Lebanon, a country without a head of state since November.