Protesters across Lebanon blocked roads using burning tires today and staged a march in Beirut on the second day of anti-government protests against the backdrop of a deep economic crisis.
Thousands gathered in front of the government headquarters in downtown Beirut yesterday evening, in the largest protests in Lebanon in years, forcing the cabinet to backtrack on plans to impose new charges on voice calls through WhatsApp.
Police fired tear gas at some protesters and clashes took place in the early hours of the day.
Smoke rose from fires burning in the streets of central Beirut this morning. Pieces of glass littered the sidewalks after several storefronts were broken and billboards torn apart.
Protesters blocked roads in the north, south, the Bekaa valley and other areas, the official NNA news agency reported. Schools were closed under government instructions. Dr
"We are one people united against the government and we want to overthrow it," said a protester in Jeita.
Two foreign workers in Lebanon were suffocated by a fire that spread to a building near the protest site in Beirut, the official NNA news agency reported.