(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Thousands of Lebanese protesters gathered in downtown Beirut Saturday for one of the largest anti-government demonstrations in the country’s history.
Protesters threatened to return to the streets if the government fails to respond to their demands in 72-hours.
The demands include the resignation of Minister of the Environment Mohamad Machnouk and a permanent solution to the garbage crisis.
But Machnouk already announced he would not resign during this “critical stage” in Lebanon’s history.
“There is joint responsibility,” he said in comments to An-Nahar newspaper. “The resignation of the Cabinet is out of the question for all political powers because it means a leap into a vacuum and chaos.”
The activist group ‘You Stink’ started the movement earlier this month in response to the widely reported trash crisis, which began when residents south of Beirut barricaded a landfill to complain of toxic fumes.
“We are still in the beginning,” said Rasha Halabi, ‘You Stink’ representative. Halabi added that protesters would widen their demands to include new parliamentary elections, if the government doesn’t act swiftly.
The protests on Saturday drew thousands of Lebanese citizens of all sects, chanting against government corruption and marching from the Interior Ministry to Martyrs’ Square downtown.
A row of ambulances and security forces remained in full force to prevent protesters from breaching barricades near parliament. But police didn’t intervene until the late evening, when a lingering crowd of protesters attempted to break through barbed wire.
Similar protests escalated into violence last weekend, prompting officials to arrest dozens and fire water cannons and tear gas at demonstrators.
Prime Minister Tammam Salam threatened to resign last week, warning rival parties that the state could face collapse.
“I warn that we are going are going towards collapse if matters continue,” Salam said in a televised address last week. “Frankly, I have not and will not be a partner in this collapse. Let all officials and political forces bear their responsibilities.”
Lebanese diaspora communities around the world have also joined in solidarity with Beirut protesters. Protests were reported in Washington DC, Los Angeles, London, Berlin, Paris, Boston, and Detroit.
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