Police, protesters clash in Beirut

Lebanese police beat back protesters with clubs and sticks and arrested dozens of people in downtown Beirut on Wednesday as a second session of dialogue among politicians got underway, the latest confrontations this city has seen over the country’s summer trash crisis.

The small group of activists had gathered near the parliament building, where the meeting was taking place. Some of the protesters had brought eggs to pelt politicians’ convoys while others tried to block the street. The crisis over uncollected trash has emerged as a festering symbol of the government’s paralysis and failure to provide basic services.