Unprecedented security deployment during Saturday demonstrations
- On day 101 of the revolution, mass marches departed from various Beirut neighborhoods towards the city’s center, raising the slogan “we will not pay the price”. The demonstrators passed a number of government buildings, including the Central Bank, EDL, and the ministries of Interior and Foreign Affairs.
- Security forces set up checkpoints at the entrances to Beirut to search buses transporting protesters from outside the capital.
- Some demonstrators tried to bypass the separation barrier in front of the Serail and managed to break through the iron gate. Security forces responded by utilizing water cannons and tear gas, as the army deployed to pushed protesters beyond the perimeter of Saifi/ Beit Al—Kataeb.
- The demonstrators also marched from several regions in the north under the slogan of “the Boiling March”.
Demonstrations in Lebanon and abroad on Sunday
- On day 102, two marches took off in Nabatieh and Tyre, entitled “No Confidence”, as demonstrators completely closed off Elia Square in Saida. Demonstrators also protested in front of the Hermel Serail to condemn the increased repressive measures adopted by security forces.
- Lebanese expatriates also demonstrated in Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, Stockholm, Rome, and London among other cities, to celebrate the centenary of the revolution.
Barricades around parliament in anticipation of Monday’s session
- Security forces tightened the barricading of downtown Beirut by building additional concrete walls in front of the Serail, on Sunday morning. Security forces issued a statement listing the roads that will be closed off : from 7 in the morning on Monday, in order for the parliamentary session to be held. Another statement was issued by the Army Command, asking citizens to comply with the measures and to refrain from blocking roads.
- At the top of the parliamentary session’s agenda is the discussion of the draft budget for the year 2020. The Kataeb Party announced their boycotting of the session due to constitutional violations, which include the fact that Diab’s new government has not yet received parliament’s trust. Groups of demonstrators issued calls for road blockage on Monday morning to prevent the session from taking place.
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