Hariri sets 72-hour deadline for govt action as Lebanese protests escalate
•Police fire tear gas, chase down demonstrators •Saudi Embassy advises citizens to be cautious
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Thursday set a 72-hour deadline for his government to find “convincing” solutions to the rapidly worsening economic crisis. It came as nationwide protests against the country’s ruling political class continued to escalate.
In an address to the nation, with hundreds of protesters outside his office, he blamed politicians in his national unity government, which includes Iran-backed Hezbollah and rival political parties, for block
ANGER OVER CORRUPTION
ing economic reforms. “I feel the people’s pain and I know that my country is going through an unprecedented difficult time,” he said. “I have been searching in vain for solutions for three years. We agreed on reforms with partners in the government and I took them to the international community... and they committed $11 billion. But when it was time for implementing the reforms, all kinds of obstacles were put in my way.”
Hariri appeared to suggest he would resign if his government fails to meet his 72-hour deadline for “clear, decisive and final” decisions but stopped short of explicitly stating it. Security forces fired tear gas and chased down protesters in Beirut on Friday as tens of thousands of people demanded the removal of a political elite they accuse of looting the economy to the point of collapse.
Riot police rounded up a number of protesters, according to Reuters sources, and used rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse demonstrators in Beirut’s commercial district. Rioters set cars ablaze and smashed shop windows.
The protests began on Thursday as thousands vented their anger against political leaders, including the president, prime minister and parliamentary speaker, they blame for decades of corruption and mismanagement. The protests are the largest Lebanon has seen since 2015 and could further destabilize a country with an economy that has one of the highest debt loads in the world and is on the verge of collapse. The protests, triggered in part by a proposed $6 monthly tax on WhatsApp internet telephone calls, united people of all religious and political backgrounds and were largely peaceful. Many said they would remain on the streets until the government resigned. Some protesters marched on the presidential palace chanting “Revolution.”
They denounced Lebanon’s political leaders, including President Michel Aoun and his son-in-law, Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, blaming them for decades of systemic corruption they say has pillaged the country’s resources.
“We are here today to ask for our rights. The country is corrupt, the garbage is all over the streets and we are fed up with all this,” said Loris Obeid, a protester in Beirut. “We are here for the future of our kids. There’s no future for us, no jobs at all and this is not acceptable anymore.” The Saudi Embassy in Lebanon advised its citizens in Lebanon to be cautious and avoid conflict zones, and to contact the embassy to arrange to leave the country as soon as possible.