A new postponement of the parliamentary consultations, Monday, December 16, allowing to advance towards the formation of a government in Lebanon have provoked a new evening of clashes between the police and protesters, after the dozens of wounded this week -end.
Lebanon has been living for two months to the rhythm of an unprecedented protest movement against the entire ruling class, accused of corruption and incompetence, which led to the resignation on October 29 of Prime Minister Saad Hariri.
But negotiations between the ruling parties have dragged on since then, to the dismay of the protesters and as the socio-economic situation deteriorates in this country already heavily indebted and of which about a third of the population lives below the poverty line.
Two postponements
President Michel "Aoun responded to Prime Minister Hariri's wish to postpone parliamentary consultations" until Thursday, the presidency wrote in a tweet Monday morning. These consultations, provided for by the Constitution, were initially set for December 9, after several weeks of procrastination that had fueled the anger of the demonstrators. Then they were postponed for a week.
One of the reasons for the postponement is the reluctance of certain political blocs, notably the two main Christian groups in power, to renew Saad Hariri. In a statement issued by his press office, the former prime minister blamed the further postponement on a desire to avoid the scenario of his "designation without the participation of a weighty Christian bloc" in the government.
New evening of confrontations
In the evening, dozens of young supporters of the two main Shiite parties attempted to attack the camp of anti-government demonstrators in central Beirut, television reports reported. In the images, they were seen throwing stones at the police, who responded with tear gas.
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The protesters tirelessly demand a cabinet composed exclusively of technocrats and personalities independent of the traditional parties headed by community leaders. They also refuse the reappointment of Saad Hariri to his post and a few dozen had gathered early Monday evening near his home.
Already on Sunday, an evening of violence near the Parliament had forced the Lebanese Red Cross to treat 45 people on the spot and hospitalize "28 people", according to its director Georges Kettané, questioned by AFP.
The UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jan Kubis, called for an investigation into "excessive use of force", stressing the need for "identification of the instigators of violence".
"Vandalism"
The internal security forces (ISF) said in a statement that 29 police officers were injured during the clashes and the army deplored "acts of vandalism and attacks on private and public property".
Also on Saturday evening, dozens of people were injured in Beirut, security forces using tear gas and rubber bullets. This violence is among the most significant since the beginning of the protest movement. Interior Minister Raya al-Hassan admitted on Monday to "mistakes" and called for an "investigation".
With AFP
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