Crisis In Lebanon Persists As Anti-Government Protests Continue - Acting Minister Of State

Crisis in Lebanon Persists as Anti-Government Protests Continue - Acting Minister of State

The situation in Lebanon remains critical as mass anti-government protests across the country continue, May Chidiac, the acting Lebanese minister of state for administrative reform, told Sputnik on Saturday on the sidelines of the Mediterranean Dialogues forum in Rome

ROME (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th December, 2019) The situation in Lebanon remains critical as mass anti-government protests across the country continue, May Chidiac, the acting Lebanese minister of state for administrative reform, told Sputnik on Saturday on the sidelines of the Mediterranean Dialogues forum in Rome.

According to the acting minister, the current crisis in the country persists as Lebanese officials do nothing to combat corruption and do not listen to the protesters, who demand that the economic situation in the country be improved.

The protests in Lebanon erupted on October 17 after a government decision to introduce a tax on internet calls made via the WhatsApp messenger. Despite the measure being scrapped, and Prime Minister Saad Hariri and his cabinet being dismissed, people have remained in the streets to demand economic reforms, specifically in the banking sector.

The rallies have grown violent and are now often accompanied by clashes between protesters and police. The situation has escalated to the point that the government was forced to order the military to refrain from using excessive force against protesters.