At around 7:00 PM Saturday, December 14, protesters attempted to enter Nijmeh Square in central Beirut to rally in front of the parliament building. Security forces present in the area responded by firing tear gas at the protesters in an attempt to disperse them.
The protesters retreated for a short period of time before regrouping and re-entering the perimeter of the Lebanese Parliament, removing the obstacles that had been placed in Nijmeh Square by security forces to prevent the protesters from entering it.
Riot police called in reinforcements to the perimeter and bombarded the protesters with a large number of tear gas pellets, trying to push them back to Martyrs’ Square. Protesters have retaliated by throwing rocks at the riot police and some brawls broke out between both sides in both Nijmeh Square and Martyrs’ Square.
الأجواء في #وسط_بيروت الأنhttps://t.co/rETLIB2fAK pic.twitter.com/Q0VltxByQK
— nbnlebanon (@nbntweets) December 14, 2019
The Red Cross and Civil Defense in the area reported so far a total of 39 injuries resulting from the clashes, 23 of which were treated on the ground while 16 cases were moved to nearby hospitals. A number of protesters were arrested by the police in the perimeter of the parliament building.