Hezbollah Leader Calls for Protesters to Meet with Government
“We do not accept the fall of the presidency nor do we accept the government’s resignation and we do not accept, amid these conditions, holding early parliamentary elections,” Nasrallah said.
25 October 2019
Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah warned on Friday that nationwide protests could push the country into chaos, collapse and, “God forbid”, civil war.
Supporters of Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed group with widespread influence in Lebanon, meanwhile scuffled with anti-government protesters who have been on the streets for days, angered by corruption and the near collapse of the economy.
Nasrallah rejected the demonstrators’ calls to bring down the government. The country endured a catastrophic civil war between 1975 and 1990.
“We do not accept the fall of the presidency nor do we accept the government’s resignation and we do not accept, amid these conditions, holding early parliamentary elections,” Nasrallah said.
Read more at https://www.telesurenglish.net/news/Hezbollah-Leader-Calls-for-Protesters-to-Meet-with-Government-20191025-0003.html
In Lebanon’s streets, there is no longer any fear
Jana Nakhal of the Lebanese Communist Party speaks to Peoples Dispatch about the anti-government, anti-austerity protests in the country.
October 21, 2019
Jana Nakhal of the Lebanese Communist Party talks about the resilience and steadfastness of the people of Lebanon, the history of organizing that led to the current protests, and the way forward.
Published at https://peoplesdispatch.org/2019/10/21/in-lebanons-streets-there-is-no-longer-any-fear/
Mass protests in Lebanon enter second week
A general strike called for by trade unions in the country entered its fourth day on October 24. All the major financial, commercial and educational institutions have been closed
October 25, 2019
Thousands continue to take to the streets as protests in Lebanon entered their second week. A general strike called for by trade unions in the country entered its fourth day on October 24. All the major financial, commercial and educational institutions have been shut and thousands of workers, students and teachers are taking an active part in the demonstrations across the country.
The protests began on October 17 following the announcement of a new set of taxes, including a monthly USD 6 tax on calls through popular social media applications. It has since spiraled into a full-fledged popular revolt against the Lebanese government and country’s entire ruling class.
There is a popular perception of widespread corruption among the post-Civil war ruling elite in the country. Under the current neo-liberal economic regime, people have experienced a deterioration in their standards of living over the past few years due to a lack of adequate employment opportunities and stagnation in wages.
Read more at https://peoplesdispatch.org/2019/10/25/mass-protests-in-lebanon-enter-second-week/
ICYMI: Lebanon’s party protest – Dissent, DJs and Baby Shark
25 Oct, 2019
Protests are raging in countries across the world, but few are doing it in as much style as Lebanon, where a quarter of the nation has hit the streets.
Amid calls for the entire government to step down, after years of economic incompetence and allegations of corruption, the protesters are trying to make the best of it.
Djs have turned the demos into open air nightclubs, children have been entertained by renditions of Baby Shark, oh, and tires have been set alight. It is a protest, after all.
ICYMI takes a look.
