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Activists call for nationwide protests in Lebanon
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AFP

The civil campaign that has organised protests against Lebanese politicians in Beirut called on Friday for a nationwide mobilisation against a government they say is too corrupt to function.

"The people’s outrage at this corrupt system continues… The protests will go on today and tomorrow in all Lebanese regions," the "You Stink" campaign wrote on its Facebook page.

The collective has called for demonstrations on Friday at 6:00 pm (1500 GMT) in the coastal city of Tyre and in Zrariyeh, both in southern Lebanon.

And on Saturday, activists have called on supporters to protest in the eastern city of Chtaura, the historic town of Beiteddine and Nabatiyeh and Marjayoun in the south.

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US under new pressure to absorb Syrian refugees as Europe faces crisis
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By

WASHINGTON –  The surge of refugees fleeing Syria and other war-torn regions is putting immense pressure not only on Europe but also the United States, as the Obama administration faces calls to take a more active role in the humanitarian crisis. 

At the same time, some lawmakers on Capitol Hill are warning that loosening immigration rules to take them in would pose a serious security risk. For the Obama administration – and the one that succeeds it – there are no easy answers. 

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Lebanon Activists Stage Hunger Strike, Want Minister to Quit
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Waref Suleiman, a Lebanese activist, holds a hunger strike with other activists outside the Environment Ministry in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Sept. 3, 2015. Several Lebanese activists launched an open-ended hunger strike on Thursday, demanding the resignation of the environment minister at the center of the country’s trash crisis. The activists set up tents outside the Environment Ministry in downtown Beirut. Several supporters joined the 11 hunger strikers Thursday evening. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

AP, Several Lebanese activists launched an open-ended hunger strike on Thursday, demanding the resignation of the environment minister at the center of the country’s trash crisis.

The activists set up tents outside the Environment Ministry in downtown Beirut. Several supporters joined the 11 hunger strikers Thursday evening.

"I want him to feel our pain," 25-year-old protester Salah Jbeili said. "He is responsible for the trash problem. We will fight him, like we will fight all corrupt politicians."

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Syrian refugees in Lebanon fear fleeing unrest again, may head to Europe
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RT, More than a million Syrian refugees feel unwelcome guests in Lebanon, where anti-government protests are only worsening. Many fear the Syrian scenario may repeat there and they will have to flee again.

Most of the migrants crossing into the EU through Macedonia and Serbia are refugees escaping unrest in Syria. But the largest number of refugees found shelter in Turkey and Lebanon.

Over 1.2 million Syrians are estimated to be in Lebanon. But according to some estimates, the figure is as high as 2 million – and more continue to arrive, RT’s Paula Slier says. And for the country of 4.5 million, millions of refugees are an unaffordable burden.

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The haunting photo of a drowned Syrian child is finally forcing the world to take notice of a years-long crisis
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, Business Insider

The image of a drowned Syrian toddler washed up on a Turkish beach that was shared widely on social media Wednesday has caught the attention of newspapers and politicians around the world. British publications The Independent, Metro, and The Sun featured the photo on their covers Thursday morning, as did the New York Daily News and The Wall Street Journal. Publications everywhere from Brazil to Turkey featured the photo as well.

The Daily Telegraph featured a different photo of a border guard holding a crying refugee child with the headline, "Plight of migrant children stirs Europe’s conscience." The photo has gripped the world and prompted questions about why European governments aren’t doing more to equitably share the burden of refugees flooding into the region.

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Lebanese Twitter users mock MTV over ‘demonstration etiquette’ episode
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Nadine Daher in MTV speaking about etiquette of demonstrations Daily Star Lebanon: Lebanese Twitter users launched a mocking campaign against the local channel MTV Thursday for airing a program section that taught audiences how to act by the "etiquette of demonstrations". The sarcasm hype was sparked by the latest episode of MTV’s early morning show named "Etiquette," […]

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UN calls on Lebanon to elect president as protests grow
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United Nations (United States) (AFP) – The UN Security Council on Wednesday called on Lebanon’s parliament to elect a new president to help ease a political crisis that has fueled street protests. The appeal came after Lebanese lawmakers again failed in their 28th bid to elect a new president and fill the post left vacant since May 2014.

The deadlock in parliament took place against the backdrop of street protests first sparked by frustration over rubbish collection but that have since mushroomed into anger at Lebanon’s political class.

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Lebanese Politicians Seek Way to Quell Public Anger –
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Lebanese anti-government protesters are seen behind metal barricades and other reinforcements that were installed as extra security measures around the Lebanese government building after anti-government protesters removed barbed wire barriers during recent demonstrations, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2015. Lebanon’s Interior Minister Nohad Machnouk warned protesters Wednesday against staging sit-ins or attacks targeting state institutions, saying such actions will no longer be tolerated. Machnouk spoke a day after a group of protesters marched into the Environment Ministry in Beirut, occupying a floor of the building in a drawn-out standoff with security forces that lasted nine hours. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

 

Jamie Dettmer, voice of America

As anti-government street protests continue to rock Lebanon’s capital, the country’s political elites are scrambling to find a way to quell rising public anger over alleged government incompetence and graft.

In a crisis that has grown out of lacking municipal services, analysts say there are now signs that a group of lawmakers may be backing the idea of appointing Lebanese army chief Jean Kahwaji as president, a post that has not been filled for more than a year.

Tensions came to a boil over two weeks ago when security forces opened fire on thousands of mainly youthful demonstrators who took to the streets to protest, initially against uncollected garbage piling up in Beirut. The protests quickly spawned a movement with expanded demands that now threatens the fragile sectarian power-sharing arrangements underpinning Lebanon since the end of its 15-year-long civil war in 1990.

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Going underground: the Jeita Grotto, Qornet El Hamra, Lebanon
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The Guardian

The Jeita Grotto lies around 11 miles north of Beirut, in the Nahr al-Kalb valley. It is an extraordinary site which could be one of the wonders of the world but remains an intimate experience. It comprises two interconnecting karstic limestone caves, spanning 5½ miles.

There is a huge concentration of crystallised formations and extraordinary stone shapes, such as stalactites, stalagmites, columns, ponds and draperies.

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Lebanon police break up ‘You Stink’ ministry sit-in
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Euronews, Police in Lebanon moved in to clear protesters who had staged a sit-in at the environment ministry. Their action highlighting an ongoing rubbish disposal crisis was the latest in a series of protests at the country’s political paralysis.

The demonstrators called for the resignation of Environment Minister Mohamad Al Machnouk.

Police moved in after protesters ignored an ultimatum from the authorities to leave.

The head of Green Party, who witnessed what happened, sympathises with their cause but not their methods.“We deplore state institutions being taken hostage. We can’t accept people entering state buildings like this. Our cause is purely environmental,” Nada Zaarour said angrily.

Outside the building hundreds more demonstrated.

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