...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...on Tuesday in protest over the country’s financial meltdown and political deadlock, despite a call by President Michel Aoun
...president of Leb, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hizbullah...
for security forces to clear the obstructions.
He spoke after a meeting with top security officials on Monday but on Tuesday a major highway leading southward from Beirut as well as areas in the center of the capital and around the northern city of Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
remained blocked with protesters burning tires and urging more people to join them.
Army chief General Joseph Aoun had said on Monday the right to peaceful protest would be protected barring damage to public or private property, but warned that troops should not get sucked into politics.
Lebanon’s financial crisis, which erupted in 2019, has wiped out jobs, locked people out of their bank deposits and raised the risk of widespread hunger.
"What are the Lebanese people waiting for? .... Are you able to teach your children? If a child gets sick, can you admit them to hospital? Can you buy them medicine...There is no education, no jobs, the dollar is at 10,000 (Lebanese pounds) and we are staying at home, dying slowly," protester Fadi Nader said.
A new cabinet could implement reforms needed to trigger billions of dollars of international aid, but factional wrangling has frustrated the formation of a new government.
Groups of protesters have been burning tires daily to block roads since the Lebanese currency tumbled to a new low last week, deepening popular anger over Lebanon’s financial collapse.
Three people died in car accidents amidst the roadblocks on Monday, local media reported.
Local television aired a funeral in Zgharta in north Lebanon for two young men who died when they drove into a truck that was parked across a road to block traffic.
"Every person in this country has to shoulder responsibility. Let protesters go to the houses of the leaders and their palaces, not block roads," the priest conducting the funeral told the gathering.
Despite growing anger on the streets, there have been no serious festivities between security forces and demonstrators in recent days, in contrast to previous rallies.
Analyst Karim Bitar said "revolution fatigue", "lack of clear vision or leadership" and anxiety over coronavirus (aka COVID19 or Chinese Plague)
...the twenty first century equivalent of bubonic plague, only instead of killing off a third of the population of Europe it kills 3.4 percent of those who notice they have it. It seems to be fond of the elderly, especially Iranian politicians and holy men...
were some of the reasons behind Tuesday's smaller numbers, and on-and-off road blocks.
"People are far too busy with the daily struggle to survive. Issues of political change have become secondary," he told AFP.
Lebanon's economic crisis has been aggravated by several lockdowns to stem the spread of the coronavirus.