Jan 22 (Reuters) - Lebanon's crisis may deepen this week if a general strike called by the opposition for Tuesday paralyses the country two days before a crucial donors meeting in Paris. WHO ARE THE OPPOSING SIDES? Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's government is backed by a loose coalition of the mainly Sunni Muslim Future Movement led by Saad al-Hariri, son of assassinated former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri; the Christian Lebanese Forces and Phalangist parties; and the Druze Progressive Socialist Party. The Shi'ite Muslim Hezbollah party is the largest group in the opposition alliance that brings it together with the fellow-Shi'ite Amal movement; Christian leader Michel Aoun; and an array of small pro-Syrian Lebanese parties. Each side has outside allies. The United States, France and Saudi Arabia are the government's firmest backers. Hezbollah, the only Lebanese faction to keep its arms after the 1975-90 civil war, is supported by neighbouring Syria and Shi'ite Iran. WHEN DID THEY FALL OUT? Hezbollah and Amal helped the government coalition to win its big parliamentary majority in 2005 elections held just weeks after Syria withdrew its troops from Lebanon. But tensions over the fate of Hezbollah's weaponry sharpened when the group's guerrillas captured two Israeli soldiers on July 12, embroiling Lebanon in a devastating 34-day war with Israel. Five Shi'ite ministers and one Christian resigned from the cabinet in November after Siniora rejected demands for a national unity government that would give the opposition veto power. Hezbollah and its allies pressed their campaign with street protests, camping outside Siniora's office in downtown Beirut since Dec. 1 and staging small-scale labour demonstrations this month. WHAT ARE THE UNDERLYING ISSUES? * The government is determined to push through creation of a U.N.-backed international tribunal to try suspects in Hariri's killing. The opposition says it accepts the principle of such a court, but wants to ensure that the government or its foreign allies cannot use it as a political weapon against Syria or Hezbollah. * Hezbollah, which showed military prowess in the July-August war with Israel, wants to keep its weapons for use against the Jewish state. Its adversaries favour Hezbollah's eventual disarmament or integration into the army, citing United Nations Security Council resolutions 1559 and 1701. * The opposition, which says the government lost its legitimacy when all the Shi'ite ministers resigned, skewing the sectarian balance in Lebanon's power-sharing system, now demands early parliamentary elections and a new electoral law. * There is no consensus on electoral reform or on who will replace pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud, whose term expires this year. Lebanon's three ruling pillars -- the Christian presidency, Sunni-led cabinet, and parliament, whose speaker is Nabih Berri, a Shi'ite ally of Hezbollah -- are all in disarray. WHAT ABOUT THE ECONOMY? The government hopes to gain billions of dollars in aid from international donors meeting in Paris on Thursday to alleviate a crippling $41 billion public debt and help with planned reforms. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah says foreign aid is welcome only if it comes without conditions. He objects to the government's proposals to raise taxes and cut subsidies. The opposition says the government is responsible for the size of the debt, accusing it of economic mismanagement and corruption. Meanwhile, many Lebanese are voting with their feet, seeking work and new lives abroad. Jolted by the war with Israel and frustrated by political strife, many see no future in Lebanon.
