Lebanon: Protests break barrier of fear in Tripoli

Lebanon's Mediterranean city of Tripoli has witnessed days of protests with reports of clashes with security forces after a coronavirus lockdown was imposed in the country.

The most violent clash occurred on Thursday night when the city center and the governorate building were torched by angry protesters.

The clashes resulted in the death of a 30-year-old demonstrator, Omar Taiba, who was shot in the back, according to health authorities.

"What is happening in the city is a result of the economic and social conditions caused by the Lebanese state, especially the total lockdown decision due to the coronavirus pandemic," Sohaib Jawhar, a journalist from Tripoli told Anadolu Agency.

He went on to say: "The lockdown has deeply affected daily wagers in a city that suffers from 69% of unemployment, 59% of poverty, and where more than 73% of institutions and companies have closed their doors."

Adnan Al-Abdullah, a 29-year-old activist, stated that "after the 2019 October Revolution, we have been calling for peaceful demonstrations, but the collective anger of people spills through the cracks."

"This corrupt authority that has ruled us for 30 years has ruined the country, so that it is unable to form a government," Al-Abdullah told Anadolu Agency.

Jamal, an activist from the southern city of Tyre who came to Tripoli to join the protests, said the demonstrations would not stop until the homeland and the dignity of the people are restored.

Jamal, who preferred not to mention his last name, held the ruling class responsible for corruption.

"The barrier of fear has been broken, and we are one nation. They [the ruling class] divided us in the name of sectarianism and stole us in the name of religions," the 27-year-old said. "We want to build a civil, secular nation."

- Political unrest

Political powers traded barbs over responsibility for the escalation of demonstrations in Tripoli.

On Wednesday, caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab said "the government is not formed or disrupted by burning tires, blocking roads, attacking state institutions and targeting internal security forces and the Lebanese army."

Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri tweeted: "There may be parties behind the moves in Tripoli that want to send political messages, and there may be those who take advantage of the people's pain and the living distress that the poor suffer."

While a stalemate continues, differences still exist between Hariri and Lebanese President Michel Aoun over the formation of the government.

Due to differences between the political forces, Lebanon has not yet been able to form a new government, since Hassan Diab's government resigned six days after the catastrophic explosion in the port of the capital Beirut last August, killing over 200 people.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat