(8 Aug 2020) Police fired tear gas and clashed with demonstrators in Lebanon's capital on Saturday at the start of a planned protest over this week's massive explosion that devastated large parts of Beirut and killed more than 150 people.
Thousands of people poured into Beirut’s main square, where they set up symbolic nooses to hang politicians whose corruption and negligence they blame for Tuesday's explosion at the Port of Beirut.
The huge blast was caused by thousands of tons of ammonium nitrate improperly stored at the port for more than six years, apparently set off by a fire.
It was the biggest in Lebanon’s history and caused an estimated $10-15 billion worth of damage, according to Beirut’s governor. It also left hundreds of thousands of people homeless.
The protest Saturday was the first significant demonstration since the explosion and organizers planned to hold a symbolic funeral for the dead.
As the protest got underway however, small groups of young men began throwing stones at security forces.
Near parliament, riot police fired tear gas at protesters who hurled stones and tried to jump over barriers that close the road leading to the legislature.
The protesters later set on fire a truck that was fortifying barriers on a road leading to parliament.
The gathering at Martyrs Square and outside the parliament building and government headquarters came amid popular anger against Lebanon’s political leadership.
The country’s ruling class, made up mostly of former civil war-era leaders, is blamed for widespread corruption, incompetence and mismanagement that contributed to Tuesday’s explosion.
The army issued a statement reminding the protesters to act peacefully and abstain from closing roads or attacking public or private property. Police also issued a statement after the protests began urging people to act “in a civilized way far away from violence."
Lebanon is mired in its worst economic and financial crisis in decades making it difficult for many people who had their properties damaged to fix them.
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