Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced his resignation on Tuesday afternoon and that he is submitting his resignation to the president of Lebanon, Michel Aoun on the backdrop of anti-government protests across the country.
Meanwhile, in an apparent anticipation of the announcement, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said in a speech on Friday that “Hezbollah is the strongest party in Lebanon” according to the JPost. The terrorist organization also came out in opposition to the peaceful protests.
The former Prime Minister conceded that regarding negotiations between the government and protesters, he has “reached a dead end.”
With Hariri out of the way, Hezbollah wasted no time sending their agents to attack the peaceful protesters. According to reports, Lebanese civilians were wounded in an attack perpetrated by Hezbollah which featured gunfire. During the incident, the protesters were assaulted by a gang of men with knives in Martyrs’ Square in Beirut. Right before that, “youth” dressed in black demolished protest tents and scared off demonstrators while Lebanon’s security forces stood idly by, according to reports by Lebanese broadcaster MTV.
The protests were initiated as response against a now-scrapped government proposal to tax communication via the WhatsApp application, and evolved into peaceful demonstrations against government corruption and poor economic conditions. This includes Lebanon having one of the highest debt levels worldwide.
Banks have been shut down for 12 days while schools and other places also closed. The current protests will likely make it more difficult for Hezbollah to carry out their plans to attack Israel.
