Protesters took to the streets in Beirut, Lebanon on Saturday over an ongoing crisis over the government’s inability to perform basic functions like clear trash from the streets. Authorities began using water cannons to subdue the protesters, and at least 35 were injured.
The country’s prime minister, Tammam Salam, threatened to resign amid the rallies, according to Reuters. The move would cause a constitutional crisis and a power vacuum in the country, as the post of the presidency, which is usually appointed by the prime minister with the consent of the government, has been vacant for months. The Salam government is composed of an unstable alliance of Sunni-aligned Future Movement of Saad al-Hariri, the Shi’ite-aligned Hezbollah, and other Christian-based groups. The government has been unable to come to a consensus on who should take up the presidency, usually a ceremonial position typically reserved for a Christian. Thus, it has been vacant for more than 450 days.
“The trash is the straw that broke the camel’s back, but the story is much bigger than this straw. It is the story of the political garbage in the country and the political trash in the country,” Salam said.
The country has been facing crises on several fronts, including a number of refugees from neighboring Syria, which is undergoing a violent civil war, and such staggering debt that the prime minister warned the country may not be able to pay government salaries.
Thousands of protesters gathered under the banner “You Stink” to highlight the trash crisis. Police responded sometimes violently, and the prime minister promised to crack down on the police’s “excesses” and maintained that protest was protected by the country’s constitution.
Protesters called for a second day of demonstrations.
