French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Tuesday that the upcoming working meeting of the International Support Group for Lebanon was seeking to help the government of the protest-gripped Middle East country understand the gravity of the situation and find a way to overcome the crisis
PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th December, 2019) French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Tuesday that the upcoming working meeting of the International Support Group for Lebanon was seeking to help the government of the protest-gripped middle East country understand the gravity of the situation and find a way to overcome the crisis.The French foreign minister will receive the working meeting, co-chaired by France and the United Nations, on Wednesday.
"The goal is to encourage the Lebanese authorities, on the one hand, to realize the seriousness of the situation, to offer them to move along the path of reform ... and also to encourage them to recognize the call of the streets and protesters, who gather regularly since October 17 ... and try to ensure the rapid formation of the government, since any delay will lead to a worsening of the situation," Le Drian said at a press conference following the meeting with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borell.
What started as calm demonstrations over the Lebanese government's decision to introduce a tax on internet calls on October 17 took a violent turn in the weeks that followed, resulting in non-stop protests coupled with clashes between the protesters and police. 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 situation has escalated to the point at which the government had to order the military to refrain from using excessive force against protesters.
